After the Storm
by makesmyheadspin
Summary: Sequel to Can't Stop This Thing We Started co-written by Scribeninja. 3 years later Eric & Sookie have settled into family life with their son Ian & have another baby on the way. Everything seems perfect, that is until the woman next door goes missing. AH
1. When She's On

**So here it is, the first chapter of the sequel to "Can't Stop This Thing We Started." If you haven't read that yet, you'll definitely want to before starting this one. Scribe and I are still working on this story but we agreed last night that we are far enough along in the process that we could start posting. This story definitely still focuses on Eric and Sookie's relationship but there's definitely some serious plot in here too. Neither Scribe or myself are expert mystery/crime writers but I got an idea and Scribe loved it as much as I did. Be prepared for epic cuteness from their son because Scribe and I are convinced he's the cutest fictional child in the world. This story is very dialogue heavy, but that's a fun way to tell a story, I think. Anyway, Scribe is still on the hook for writing Eric, and we take turns writing Ian depending on which one of us is in the mood to get into the head of a three-year-old. See you at the bottom!**

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><p><span>Chapter 1: When She's On<span>

"Ian Adam Northman, you get your little monkey butt back in here!" I shouted as my son took off running down the hall, covered in suds.

I got up to chase him down, and was thankful when I heard Eric scoop him up down the hallway. I came around the corner in time to hear Eric growl and Ian squeal with laughter. The two of them were ridiculously adorable together.

At just over three years old, Ian was into pretty much everything he could possibly get into. The little bit of a pouch I had going courtesy of baby number two that was currently cooking away in my belly meant I wasn't moving as quickly as I once was. It was, however, adorable when Ian would curl up on the couch with me and tell my belly stories. I didn't understand his gibberish half the time, but it was cute all the same.

"Daddy, bubbles!" Ian held out his sud covered hand.

"Lots of bubbles!" Eric said, then blew on them, making them fly off in the air.

"Eric!" I rolled my eyes.

"Uh oh, Daddy in trouble," Ian giggled, his legs squirming around.

"Daddy will clean up his mess, but you have to help me with all the bubbles you left behind when you ran off."

"No, you," Ian gave him one of those cheesy grins that made both of us laugh.

I walked over to Eric with Ian's towel in my hands and started to pat him down. "Ian, what's the rule about running around when you're all wet?" I asked him. This wasn't the first time he'd done this.

"It's a no-no," he said but there was no remorse in his voice.

I handed Eric the towel and said, "You can dress him for bed."

"Alright, Snitch, let's get you in your jammies, and then we're going to help each other clean up the mess."

Eric set Ian down and he immediately took off running again. He was a fast little bugger, which was partially how he got his nickname. I sighed and sagged against the wall.

"I swear, there's got to be crack hidden somewhere in this house," I said as Ian ran into his bedroom.

"If only we could bottle the energy he has and take it," he said, and came over to pull me into a hug.

"I don't think I could handle you with that kind of energy," I snickered and hugged him back. "I'm going to go make the bed."

"You could if we didn't have a three-year-old that likes to interrupt us," he said, releasing me.

"He wouldn't interrupt us if you'd let me lock the door," I said as I walked down the hall toward our bedroom.

"I don't like locked doors," he called over his shoulder as he went to Ian's room.

I rolled my eyes and went to work making our bed. Listening to the two of them chatter down the hall was fun. Ian was always making up little stories and half of the time they were unintelligible. He was getting better with using actual words we could understand, but he still spoke his own brand of English some of the time. When I finished with making the bed I went back down the hall to find Ian was tucked into bed already and Eric was reading to him from one of the Harry Potter books.

It was no accident that our son's room had a wizard theme to it.

I stood in the doorway and just listened while Eric read. Ian's eyes started to get heavy, and finally closed two pages later. Eric read one more page just to be on the safe side, and then he marked his place in the book. I wouldn't be shocked if Ian had the entire series memorized by the time he got to school. I stepped into the room and leaned down to kiss my son's forehead, and told him I loved him.

"He told me the best story tonight," Eric whispered as he flipped on Ian's nightlight.

"Oh yeah?" I whispered and stepped into the hallway.

"Yeah, it involved wizards, and you," he smiled.

"Oh do tell," I laughed quietly and led the way down the hall to our room.

"Apparently you're really a supreme witch, and you cast a spell on Ian to eat his vegetables, so he got a wizard to cast a counter-spell on you so that you only gave him candy for meals."

"Ian's going to get beat up when he starts school," I sighed and shook my head.

"What? Why would you say that?" he asked, his eyes wide.

"Because he's a special little boy, Eric," I pulled off my shirt and threw it in the hamper.

"He's an awesome little boy, and anyone who tries to beat him up will have to deal with me," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yes, I know," I went to the bathroom and washed my face.

"Kids need to be more tolerant. I love Ian's imagination. He's wonderful."

"I agree," I reached blindly for a towel that Eric ended up handing to me. "I encourage him to come up with things all the time, and he never fails to entertain."

"Maybe we should home school him."

"Seriously?" I dropped the towel.

"Well schools are so dangerous these days. And there are advantages to home schooling. Plus, he can still be involved in social things."

He was serious. Really serious.

"I think we should talk about this when it gets closer to when he'll be starting school," I suggested because I had a feeling it was going to turn into an argument.

"Why can't we talk about it now? It's a big issue."

"Because I don't want to fight with you and I'm exhausted," I grabbed my toothbrush and loaded it with toothpaste.

"So you're against it?"

I rolled my eyes and bent to spit out my toothpaste. "I don't know, I haven't really given it any thought yet, but I know you. You want it all resolved right this minute and I can't do that."

"It doesn't have to be resolved right this minute. I just want to know where you stand."

"Didn't I just say I haven't given it any thought?" I stuffed my toothbrush back in my mouth before my pregnancy hormones took over.

"Alright, fine, I'll stop," he said, holding his hands up in surrender.

I came out of the bathroom a minute later to find Eric had ditched his jeans. The instances of sleeping naked had declined significantly ever since Ian got his big boy bed. It really was a miracle that I was able to get pregnant again, considering the drop in the amount of sex we had.

"I'll think about the home schooling thing," I said as I pulled off my yoga pants.

"Thank you," he said. "Now, how are you feeling about sex tonight?"

"Only if you lock the door," I climbed up onto the bed.

"Sookie..."

"I'm serious, Eric. I don't want him walking in on us. He needs to learn to be patient."

"What if he has a nightmare?"

"We'll hear him. And when has he _ever_had a nightmare?"

"I don't know," he said, then sighed. "Alright, I'll lock the door. But that means we're doing it on top of the covers this time."

I looked at him like he had two heads. I didn't understand his logic. At all.

"You always make us do it under the covers if the door isn't locked."

"Uh huh..."

He went to the door and unlocked it, then dropped his boxers to the floor. "Naked. Now."

"In a hurry are you?"

"We haven't had sex in a long time," he shrugged, and climbed onto the bed.

"We had sex last week," I reminded him.

"Last week, Sookie. Remember the days when we said an hour ago?"

"Not really," I sighed, which was sad.

"We need to get back to that."

"I don't think that's going to happen until the kids go off to college."

"But these are our prime fucking years."

I yawned and said, "Mmhmmm."

"No no, not time for yawning, time for moaning, and grunting, and orgasms," he said, and pulled me against him. "And why aren't you naked yet?"

"Because I was comfortable lying where I was."

"Are you not into it? Do you not find me desirable anymore?"

"I love you, Eric, and I still think you're extremely hot. I'm just exhausted. I want to, believe me, I do, but..." I trailed off. I was in the process of throwing away some perfectly opportunity for sex. What the hell was wrong with me?

He deflated a little, and got up off the bed. He put his boxers back on and unlocked the door before climbing back in. "It's fine. You _are_growing another human at the moment."

"I'm sorry," I said and even though I didn't want to, I started crying. I was frustrated with myself, and the stupid freaking hormones didn't help any either.

"Dammit, don't cry. I'm fine," he said, grabbing the tissues from the nightstand. "I'll just rub one out in the shower in the morning."

That only made me cry harder.

"Shit, I shouldn't have said that." He patted my arm awkwardly. "How about I just stay celibate unless you're the one getting me off?"

It took me a few minutes to get control of myself, and I'm not sure if Eric took a breath the entire time.

"I'm not upset that you _would_rub one out in the shower, but that it feels like your only option. This is fucking frustrating," I explained as best I could. "I hate that I would rather sleep because I miss you, and I miss all the fun stuff we used to do when we went to bed at night besides sleeping. And I hate that the best you get lately is a quick visit with Rosy and her slutty sisters."

"I'm fine with that. You'll be hitting your horny stage soon enough and I won't be able to keep you off my dick," he joked, trying to make me smile.

"And it'll be just our luck that Ian gets some kind of cold that has him sleeping in bed with us every night," I sniffled.

"Then we'll sneak off to the bathroom once he's out."

"It's good to have a backup plan," I smiled a little.

"See, we'll be fine. Our relationship isn't just about sex anyway. I also like other things about you. Like... well... Hmmm..."

"Hmmmm?"

"Oh, I'm just trying to think of something else I like about you."

My jaw dropped.

"You have to think about it?"

He burst out laughing, "I'm just fucking with you, Sookie. I love all kinds of things about you."

"Yeah, obviously," I muttered.

"I do! I love your smile, and that we can joke around with each other. I love taking care of our son with you. I love your cooking, and watching movies with you. I could spend the rest of my life only having sex once a month with you and I'd be fine."

"I wouldn't," I admitted with a serious pout on my face.

"Then it's good that I'd still be willing to fuck you whenever you wanted."

I sighed and practically laid on top of him. He wrapped his arms around me and I said, "This is the bullshit part about being pregnant that no one really warns you about."

"The exhaustion?"

"The temporary insanity," I said and then laughed a few seconds later.

"It's all worth it in the end though."

"Yeah, but in the meantime I feel like a basketcase," I trailed a line of kisses along his jaw. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess."

"You're not a mess," he insisted, his hands going to my ass for a nice squeeze.

"I am a little bit. Wanna make out for a while and see what happens?" I offered.

"Absolutely, I do."

"Good. We don't make out enough anymore either," I smiled at him.

"No we don't," he said, and leaned up a little to capture my lips with his.

I couldn't remember the last time Eric and I just made out for a while, and that made me a little sad. Between work, Ian, the dogs, the house, errands, chores and whatever else there was to keep us busy, it was hard to find time for each other. Nine times out of ten when we did find the time either one of us was too tired, or Ian would interrupt. Quickies were nice once in a while, but they stopped being exciting when that was all we got.

We laid there kissing for a while, and eventually I reached behind me and unhooked my bra. I had my pregnancy boobs back and since they weren't as sore anymore, Eric had the green light to go at them as much as he wanted. I broke the kiss we had going, and pulled back to toss my bra away. It had barely left my hand when his face was buried in my cleavage.

He sucked and teased my nipples alternately until I was panting and rocking my hips against his. He tilted his face up again and I took advantage, and kissed him again. I reached down and brushed against the definite erection he had going. Eric groaned into the kiss, and I put my hand down his boxers.

"Should I lock the door?" Eric asked when my lips moved to his neck.

"Mmm... only if you can't be quiet," I said and started stroking him.

"Fuck," he groaned.

"Eric, cursing," I scolded in my best Eric impersonation voice.

"I don't sound like that," he pouted, and then his eyes rolled when my thumb passed over the head of his erection.

I smirked against his skin and kissed my way down his torso, stopping at each of his nipples to tease them as he had done with mine. I dragged my teeth over his abs, and nibbled my way down until I got to his cock. His body tensed when he felt my breath there, and I looked up into his eyes with a devilish smile on my face.

My tongue snaked out and swirled over the tip of his cock and he grunted, his hand settling in my hair. I teased him with a swirling tongue and kept stroking for a bit before finally taking him in my mouth. I didn't go all out and deep throat him, but that would have been too much.

It wasn't long before his hips started to try and thrust up, but a squeeze to his balls settled him a little. He hissed at me, but I compensated by taking him a little deeper down my throat. The closer he got to coming, the more frequent his grunts and groans became.

"Ugh, Sookie," he grunted and I felt him swell a little more.

I hollowed my cheeks and sucked a little harder, bobbing my head a little faster. His grip tightened my on hair. His breathing became a little shallower, and definitely accelerated. My tongue swirled around the head of his cock, and I started to moan and hum a little.

"Sookie!" he almost shouted and then exploded down my throat.

I slowed the bobbing of my head as I swallowed, but I waited a minute before I released him from my mouth. When I looked up, Eric looked all starry-eyed and adorable. I kissed my way up his stomach, and pecked him on the mouth.

"Hopefully that was better than rubbing one out in the shower," I smirked and he pulled me into another kiss.

**oOoOoOo**

"Mama!" Ian shouted as he came barreling into our bedroom.

Ugh. Was it morning already?

"Mama, wake up!" he climbed up onto our bed from the foot of it where there was a little bench. He flopped down between Eric and me.

"Inside voice, Ian," I reminded him.

"Daddy, wake up," Ian turned to Eric and started climbing on him.

"Hey little man," Eric said groggily. "What's the big rush?"

"Is morning," he said as if Eric should already know that.

"This is why we should lock the door," I muttered and buried my head under a pillow.

Of course that just meant that Ian jumped on me instead, but that was a no-no since I was pregnant.

"Ian," Eric scolded him. "What did we say about jumping on Mommy?"

"Not to," he said in that guilty tone of his.

I peeked out from under the pillow and asked, "Why aren't you supposed to jump on Mommy?"

"Because there's a baby," he hung his head.

"Tell Mommy you're sorry, Ian."

"I sorry, Mama," he leaned over and laid his head on my chest.

"It's okay; I forgive you," I kissed his head and gave Eric a sad smile.

"Me too, buddy," Eric said, and rubbed his back. "Want some breakfast?"

"Yes, please," his head popped up.

I would have sat up but I was still naked from the night before, and at least Eric had his boxers on.

"Pancakes?" Eric asked as he picked Ian up.

"With smiles," Ian said and tried to climb up Eric's chest. He was such a little monkey.

"With smiles?" I looked at Eric.

"Of course with smiles," he said. "Tell Mommy she can go back to sleep now."

"Go to sleep now," Ian blew kisses at me.

"Are you sure?" I asked Eric.

"I've got this," he said. "Go back to sleep."

"Thank you," I smiled and blew kisses back to Ian. "Be good for Daddy."

Ian just giggled, so I had no idea what that meant, but Eric closed the door behind him when he left the room. I rolled onto my side and closed my eyes. When they opened again it was close to ten, and I felt like a bum for sleeping so late. I rolled out of bed and went straight to the bathroom to pee. I put on a nightgown and then went downstairs to see what Eric and Ian were up to. I found them in the living room. Ian was on the floor, sound asleep and propped up against Fang.

Eric was sitting on the couch typing out an email on his phone. I leaned over the back of the couch and kissed his cheek.

"Thank you for letting me sleep," I whispered in his ear and nibbled on the shell of it a little.

"No problem," he said, and turned to get a kiss on the lips.

"How long has he been out?" I asked.

"About twenty minutes."

"Wanna come wash my back for me?" I winked.

"I would love to," he said, tossing his phone aside as he hopped up off the couch.

Eric chased me back up the stairs, both of us knowing time was limited. Every once in a while Ian would pass out in the morning, but it wasn't for more than forty-five minutes or an hour. But since the night before hadn't really gone the way either of us wanted to, it made sense to take advantage of the time we had.

"Him taking a morning nap is the only bonus to being woken up just after sunrise," I said as I started the shower.

"Sometimes that little turd knows what's good for us."

"Eric!" I laughed.

"Well he does. Now let's do this before he wakes up and destroys something."

"Or tries to get in here with us," I cringed at the thought.

"Oh, that kid of ours," he laughed and shook his head.

"I swear," I pulled off my nightgown, "I will teach him to knock on a closed door if it's the last thing I do."

"Good luck with that," he said and dropped his boxers.

"It'll happen. I'm the bad cop, remember? Although I have to tell you, when you put that little extra bass in your voice... good gravy, that's sexy," I backed into the shower stall.

"Oh, so you like when I get all dominant, huh?" he asked.

"I do. You know I do," I stepped under the water.

"Turn around," he ordered as he stepped into the shower.

I stayed were I was, but I turned around so I was facing the wall.

"Put your hands on the wall."

I leaned forward a little and put my hands on the wall. Eric pressed himself against me, and kissed from my shoulder up to my ear.

"Tell me what you want, Sookie."

I just wiggled my hips so my ass rubbed against him, but I didn't say anything.

"I thought so," he growled in my ear, and lightly slapped my ass.

I jumped a little, but smiled at the same time. He caught me by surprise, but in a good way.

"Do you want it like this, sweetheart?" he asked, and I suddenly felt him move his cock through my folds. "Or should I turn you around and fuck you against the wall?"

I whimpered, not really caring what he did. Either one would feel amazing.

"Tell me, Sookie," he demanded.

"Against the wall," I panted, and turned my head to look back at him.

He quickly turned me around and lifted me from my ass, then pressed me against the wall. My legs wrapped around his waist, and then his lips found mine. "Good choice," he growled.

He kissed me hard and his fingers teased my entrance from underneath after a slight shift of his hands. I moaned loudly and he pulled back with a heated look in his eyes.

"I may have had a dirty dream about you," I rocked my hips against him, trapping his erection between us and rubbing against it.

"Oh yeah? What happened in it?"

"I kept locking our bedroom door, so you tied me to the bed so I couldn't," I would have laughed since that was something Eric might really do, but his fingers teasing me was no laughing matter.

"And what did I do after I tied you to the bed?"

"I don't know. I woke up before you got to make good on any of your threats," I gasped when he nibbled that spot on my neck.

"Then I'll have to make some new ones and follow through when you're good and awake."

"Yes please."

"For now, I'm just going to fuck you," he said, and reached down between us with one hand to position himself.

His other fingers moved out of the way, and he entered me with a swift thrust of his hips. I cried out, my eyes going wide and staring right into his. I saw the glimmer of satisfaction when my eyes went wide, and he rolled his hips a little when he was buried inside me. I moaned and leaned forward to kiss him.

We had taken too much time with the foreplay and chatter to take the kind of time I'm sure we would have preferred, but there was no way of knowing when Ian might come looking for us. I hated having that thought in the back of my mind when I should have been concentrating on fucking my husband.

"Don't think about it," Eric said when my eyes drifted toward the bathroom door.

"Can't help it," I said, and then gasped when he rubbed against my clit.

"Stay with me," his lips captured mine, and it was a good thing since my orgasm exploded suddenly and he was able to stifle the noises I was making.

Eric followed shortly after with a few grunts of his own, and was reluctant to put me back on my feet. We kissed a few more times and then reached for the soap to get cleaned up.

"See? Our sex life is alive and well."

"Yes, it is, but I miss the old days," I sighed and soaped up my growing tummy.

"We'll get them back," he said.

"I hope so because we're coming up on the fourth month."

"Then we'll just have to make sure we can have a fair amount of date nights in which we go to a hotel for a few hours."

"Oh my God why didn't I think of that?" I grinned.

"Because you don't think with your dick."

"I guess I should work on that, huh?"

"Yes you should," he said, and gave me a kiss just as we heard our lovely son calling for us.

I stuck my head out of the shower stall just as Ian came bouncing into the room, bright eyed and fully charged. "Ian, go watch TV on Mommy's bed. I'll be right out," I told him.

"Okay, Mommy," he turned and ran back to the bedroom.

"What do you want to bet he'll be jumping on the bed when we get out there?" I reached for the shampoo.

"Most likely," he laughed.

We finished washing up quickly and Eric was out of the shower first. I was rinsing conditioner out of my hair when Ian started knocking on the shower stall door. The glass was frosted, but we still tried to keep him out when we were showering.

"Ian, not now. I'll be out in a minute," I told him.

I saw him turn and run back to the bedroom, and I turned off the water. Carefully, I reached out for my towel and wrapped it around me before stepping entirely out of the stall. I caught Ian jumping on our bed out of the corner of my eye. Seriously, if there was a way to bottle that kind of energy...

"Ian, what's the rule about jumping on the bed?" I asked as I walked by him.

"Only when you not looking," he said in a sing-song voice.

I forced myself not to laugh, even though I really, really wanted to.

"Eric, we've got a monkey jumping on our bed."

"A monkey, you say?"

"A blonde one," I said and Ian started making little monkey noises.

"Should I go get the monkey?"

"I think you should," I smiled and Ian started giggling.

Eric went into the bedroom and pounced on our monkey, and the sound of both of their laughter warmed my heart.

"Uh oh, I think I have two monkeys on my bed," I laughed at the two of them wrestling around.

"What are you going to do about it?" Eric asked, and Ian chimed in with a, "Yeah!"

Usually I would jump up there and play with them, but we were trying to get Ian not to jump on me so much because I was pregnant. He didn't quite grasp the concept of it yet, but he would soon.

"I think I'm gonna pick up this little monkey," I picked Ian up and he squealed, "and take him back to the zoo!"

"No!" he squealed more when I tickled him.

His little face was bright red from laughing so much.

"No, not the zoo!" Eric said, and reached for him.

"Yes, the zoo!" I backed away from the bed.

"But I not a monkey!" Ian said between gasps for air.

"You're not?"

"No, I Ian," he told me.

"I don't know, you look like a little monkey," I tickled him some more.

"I don't think monkeys can talk, sweetheart," Eric pointed out.

"You're a monkey and you're talking," I stuck my tongue out at him.

"What? I'm not a monkey! I don't want to go to the zoo either," he said.

"I don't know... my house would stay a lot cleaner," I snickered and put down my squirming toddler. "Okay, you don't have to go to the zoo. But no more jumping on the bed."

"Best do as she says, buddy," Eric said. "I don't want to have to come visit you in that stinky place."

"I'm going to Hogwars anyway," Ian announced and Eric beamed with pride.

"No you're not, you little muggle," I ruffled his hair and he gave me the dirtiest look he could.

"Sookie!"

"What?" I shrugged.

"Our son is a great wizard, not a mere muggle, right Ian?"

"Right!" Ian climbed up Eric's legs.

Seriously, I couldn't win with them. It wasn't even worth trying.

"Who's ready for lunch?" Eric asked. He stood up and swung Ian up onto his back.

"I haven't even had breakfast yet, so definitely me," I said and turned toward the door.

"I think Mommy should pick what we have for lunch. What say you, young Ian?" Eric asked him. They were so playful together.

"Yes sir!" Ian looked at me.

"I think we should have turkey BLTs," I said and Ian bounced a little.

He liked any food that he could build himself.

"That sounds delicious."

We got down to the kitchen and Eric started frying the bacon while I got the lettuce and tomatoes ready. I put Ian in charge of putting the bread into the toaster. He couldn't help us too much with cooking yet, but we didn't shoo him out of the room either. We let him do little things because he liked helping, and because he was going to have to learn someday anyway.

"So, Ian, should we go to the park after lunch today, or do you want to go to the restaurant with Daddy for a little while?" I asked him.

"I wanna go with Daddy," Ian started jumping again. He never turned down the opportunity to go to work with Eric.

"Gonna flirt with all the waitresses again?" Eric teased him.

"Like you said," Ian nodded and I looked at Eric.

"You're teaching our son to flirt with older women?"

"He's got to learn sometime."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Better him than you, I guess. Unless he's learning by example?"

"Of course not! They flirt with him first anyway, and then he'll whisper to me and I'll teach him what to say."

"I called Abby 'toots' and she kissed me," Ian volunteered from his perch on the counter.

I looked at Eric and we both burst out laughing.

"And he didn't even get cooties."

"He better not get any cooties, or he's definitely going to the zoo," I threatened. "Besides, Ian, I thought Jessica was your girlfriend?"

"I can have two, Mommy!"

"Uh oh... we've got a little Casanova on our hands," I looked at Eric.

"Ian, remember what I said about it not being nice to have two girlfriends?" Eric asked him.

"But Jessi is my night girlfriend. Abby is my day girlfriend," he said as if that explained everything.

"That's it. For Halloween I'm dressing him like a little pimp," I laughed.

"It doesn't work that way, buddy," Eric said, and patted him on the head.

"Yes it does," Ian argued with a smile, clearly unfazed by what Eric was telling him.

"But what if Jessica finds out that you have another girlfriend?"

"I'm cute," he shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh boy," Eric sighed. "Your teen years are going to be fun."

"Just be glad we don't have a daughter... yet," I snickered and when the toast popped up, I grabbed it out of the toaster before Ian could burn himself trying to do it for me.

"Mommy can I have pink milk?" Ian asked suddenly.

"I don't know. Did you eat all your breakfast this morning?" I looked to Eric, since Ian would say anything to get strawberry milk.

Eric nodded that he did, and Ian started assuring me that he all but licked his plate clean.

"Okay, go get the strawberry syrup," I told him and sat him down on the floor.

He took off like a shot for the pantry.

"Your son is full of charm," I shook my head while I got down a cup for him.

"He gets it from his mother," he smiled, and kissed my cheek.

"I didn't teach him to flirt with the waitresses," I reminded him.

"Here, Mommy!" Ian came running back with the strawberry syrup.

"He was kind of doing that all on his own, I just helped him refine his skills."

"You created a monster," I pulled the milk out of the fridge.

"Perhaps."

I mixed up the milk for Ian so that it was just barely pink. He didn't get to have it all the time, although it wasn't for lack of trying. The last thing that little boy needed was extra sugar.

Eric finished frying the bacon and I put Ian back on the counter so he could make his sandwich the way he wanted it. He was obsessed with green, as of late, so he put more lettuce on his sandwich than anything else.

"Got enough green there, buddy?" I asked when he had at least five pieces of lettuce on there.

"Maaaaaaaaybe," he grabbed one more piece.

"Save some for the rest of us," Eric said.

"You can have the red. You like red," Ian smashed the other piece of bread down on his sandwich.

"Do you want triangles or squares, Ian?" I asked him before I cut his sandwich for him.

"This kind," he held up his hands to make a triangle.

"That's how I want mine too, Mommy," Eric said to me, then winked at Ian.

I cut Ian's sandwich into four triangles for him and took his plate over to the kitchen table. Eric set him down on the floor and he came scampering up to climb onto his chair with the little booster seat on it. I returned to the counter to building my sandwich, pausing only to cut Eric's sandwich in half for him diagonally so he'd have his triangles.

"Thank you," he said, and kissed me before heading to the table.

"You're welcome," I answered and finished putting my sandwich together.

I stopped in the pantry and grabbed a bag of pretzels before going to the table. Ian immediately reached for the bag, but Eric hoisted it out of the way before Ian could claim it.

"Daddy!" Ian had the same pout as his father.

"What?" he asked.

"Gimme!" Ian demanded.

Eric simply raised an eyebrow at him, and Ian corrected himself.

"Gimme _please_, Daddy."

"That's better," Eric said, and opened the bag, then held it out for Ian to take from.

The manners thing was a work in progress, but Ian was getting better with it. Of course Ian took as many pretzels as he could before Eric took the bag away.

"Are you going to fit all those in your tummy?" I asked Ian, who nodded vigorously.

"I hungry," he said with a full mouth.

"I think our little guy is hitting another growth spurt," Eric said.

"Of course he is. He's worn the clothes that fit him for a full week," I snickered.

"Time for another shopping trip then."

"You'd think. You weren't here the last time Grammy Angela visited," I grinned at him.

"Oh jeez. I need to call her again."

"Don't you dare! It saves me from having to go shopping," I laughed and Eric rolled his eyes.

"I guess I should be thankful it's not toys."

"I like toys," Ian interjected.

"And you have enough toys," Eric told him.

"Never!" Ian stuffed a pretzel in his mouth.

"Uh huh." Eric popped a pretzel in his mouth and looked to me.

"I don't know, Eric, you have almost as many toys around here as Ian does," I smirked.

"Hey! Co-parent. My side."

"I'm just saying," I smiled and then looked at Ian. "You have plenty of toys, buddy. You just got a bunch for your birthday."

There were unopened ones in the basement that we left down there for when he got bored with what he had. There was no point in giving them to him all at once.

"Thank you," Eric smiled at me.

"But I can have more," Ian drank some of his milk and then had a pink mustache.

"Why are you so cute?" Eric asked him.

"I don't know. I came out of Mommy's tummy that way," he said, and then took another bite of his mostly green sandwich.

Eric and I just looked at each other and smiled. That kid of ours was something else.

* * *

><p><strong>Alrighty, so this first chapter is really just a glimpse into what their life is like now that they're parents. Scribe and I be posting pictures and things to a tumblr that was created specifically to go along with this story so if you're inclined to check it out go over to sookiesweetheart(dot)tumblr(dot)com and you can see pics of their house, son and how much Sookie enjoys teasing Eric with naughtier pics. There are also little bits of chat that show up now and again so you never know what you might find there. Thanks for reading!<strong>


	2. Still the One

Chapter 2: Still the One

"Ian, come back! You're on Jessi's lawn now!" I called when I looked up to see Ian running around with the dogs. Sometimes I thought he thought he was one of them.

Just then our next door neighbor's back door opened and I prepared to apologize for Ian and the dogs making it that far. The Comptons were fairly well-known around town, and their daughter, Jessica, babysat for us on a regular basis. Jessica's mother, Lorena, didn't mind Ian and the dogs so much, but her husband was another story. He never came right out and complained, but I sensed the disapproval on his face. Luckily, it was Jessica that came outside, and Ian went screaming in her direction.

"Jessi!" he flung his arms around her.

"Hey little guy," she smiled as she hugged him. Jessica was so good with him, and he absolutely loved her. "Hi, Mrs. Northman."

"Hi," I waved as I walked over to collect my little monster.

"Jessi you come play?" Ian gave her the lip.

"In just a little bit," she said to him. "You and I are going to hang out tonight."

"Cuz you my girlfriend," Ian grinned at her all pumpkin-like.

I just stood back and watched them.

"What? You never asked me to be your girlfriend," she said. "And you also never gave me flowers. Girls love flowers."

"Daddy gives Mommy flowers," Ian volunteered and I chuckled quietly.

"That's 'cause your daddy loves your mommy. She's like his girlfriend."

"I love you," Ian said and wrapped his arms around her neck.

Yeah, I totally melted.

"Little boy, you are going to break hearts all over," I said quietly.

"Aww," Jessica said, hugging him back. "I love you, too."

Ian laid his head on her shoulder like the little snuggle bug he was.

"Things still on track for tonight?" Jessica asked me.

"Yes. We'll be ready to go at six, and we're going to order a pizza for you guys," I told her. "Anything special you want on it?"

"I'm not picky," she said. "I'll have whatever he'll eat."

"I want green," Ian said.

"Green, huh?"

Ian lifted his head and nodded. "I like green."

"You know, I have some green ice cream," Jessica said. "Maybe you can have some the next time I watch you in the afternoon."

"Yeah!" his little face lit up.

"Come on, Ian, let's let Jessi finish her homework so she can come over later," I reached to take him.

"I can walk, Mommy," he said with authority.

Well then.

"I'll see you soon, Ian," Jessica smiled down at him.

"Bye Jessi," he hugged her leg.

"Thanks for watching him tonight," I smiled at her.

"I love doing it," she said. "He's a great kid."

"Yes, he is," I said and watched him run back to the house. "We'll see you later."

"Bye."

I waved and turned back for the house. Ian climbed the stairs and let himself inside, the screen door smacking behind him. Fang curled up on her favorite spot under a tree and Sully dropped down near her. The dogs were good about staying close to the house. They would prowl the perimeter, but that was about it. Only once did Fang go running off and it was only because she had been antagonized by a woodland creature of some kind.

"Mommy can I watch Mickey Mouse?" Ian asked when I walked inside.

"Yes you can, but we'll watch upstairs so Mommy can get ready to go out," I said and Ian ran for the stairs.

I got the DVD set up in our bedroom for him and then went to the bathroom to shower up. I could hear Ian singing along with the music that was playing, and wondered if he had inherited his father's love of musicals. Only time would tell on that one. When I stepped out of the shower, I heard Eric's voice coming from the bedroom.

"Did you give her flowers then?" he asked.

"No, Daddy, I don't have any money."

"Well, you can pick the flowers from the yard. Just don't take any from Mrs. Compton's garden. Girls like flowers you pick more than flowers you buy."

"You don't pick the ones you give Mommy."

"Sometimes I do," he chuckled.

Sometimes listening in on their conversations was the best part of my day. It never ceased to amaze me how much knowledge Ian soaked up in a day. He paid attention when we told him things, even if it didn't look like it. He was a smart little bugger.

"Why can't I come with you later?" Ian asked for the hundredth time. He didn't like being left out, even if it meant he got to stay with Jessica.

"Because Mommy and I need to spend time alone together sometimes. If we don't, we'll forget why we think each other are cute."

"No you won't," Ian said in a dismissive way.

"And how do you know that?"

"Because you love Mommy," Ian said as if Eric should know better.

See what I mean about him being smart?

"You're right, I do. And I want to keep it that way. If I forget that she's cute she might not like me much anymore."

"You silly," Ian giggled.

I peeked out of the bathroom and said, "And I want to kiss Daddy and you think that's icky."

"That's how you get cooties!" Ian laughed more.

"Mommy and Daddy don't have cooties," Eric said, and started tickling him.

"Yes you do!" Ian said between squeals.

"Nuh uh!"

"Yeah!" Ian tried to tickle back but it was hardly effective. He curled into the fetal position and his face turned bright red.

Thank God he was still in Pull-Ups or he probably would have peed his pants.

"Mercy?" Eric asked.

Ian just kept laughing. He was lost in his own delirium. It was adorable.

"Skirt or pants, Eric?" I asked him from the enormous walk-in closet we shared.

"Skirt, please," he said.

I smiled and looked for a dress to wear. I had no idea what he had planned since it was his turn to pick what we did on our date, but I wouldn't be the least bit shocked if we ended up in a hotel for a few hours. Just to be on the safe side, I started with some lingerie Eric hadn't seen yet that I'd picked up after I acquired my new pregnancy boobs, and decided I'd wear it. For all I knew it might be my last chance.

I put my robe back on and then went to the bathroom to do my hair and makeup. It was nice to get pretty once in a while. Most days I was lucky if I had time for a shower, much less getting dressed up. I sat with Ian and ordered the pizza for him and Jessica while Eric showered and got dressed. He was just coming out of the closet in a pair of dark dress pants and a button down shirt when the doorbell rang.

"That must be Jessica," I said and Ian took off running. "Want me to get it?"

"Yeah, I need to get my shoes on."

I followed Ian downstairs to let Jessica inside. We kept the screen door in the kitchen latched so he couldn't just go running outside whenever he wanted. Jessica was standing at the door with a smile on her face and her book bag slung over her shoulder.

"Hey there," I smiled and flipped the latch up to let her in. "Sorry I'm answering the door in my bathrobe."

"It's okay," she smiled. "Hey Ian!"

"Hi Jessi!" he bounced with his arms in the air for her to pick him up.

"Buddy, let her put her stuff down first," I lifted him up and out of the way.

"Thanks," she said, and set her backpack down under the coat rack hanging by the door, then kicked her shoes off. I assumed that was a rule in her house, because we'd never asked her to do it.

"I ordered the pizza about a half hour ago, so it should be here soon. I'll leave money for it here, and the tip is included in it. No matter what Ian says, he's not allowed to eat in front of the TV," I said, knowing he would try to flirt his way into it.

"Good to know. What about d-e-s-s-e-r-t?"

"There are several options in the freezer but he only gets one. He'll take whatever he can if you let him, and don't let him have it after seven, or he'll never get to bed on time," I warned.

I did _not_want to come home to find Ian still awake.

"Understood," she said with a laugh. "It's not my intention for you two to come home to a hyper kid."

"I am happy to hear that," I grinned just as Eric came downstairs looking good enough to eat. "If you will excuse me, I'm going to go get dressed. Eric can fill you in on the rest."

"Hey Jessica," Eric smiled. "How are you doing?"

"Good. I got an A on that math test thanks to you."

"That's great!"

I missed the rest of what was said since I ran upstairs to get dressed, but I was sure Eric went over everything with Jessica yet again, even though she'd babysat for us once a week for the last year or so. She was a sweet kid. She did well in school and since her parents were right next door she had reinforcements if something went wrong. So far, though, we had never encountered a problem. Ian absolutely adored her, and it seemed the feeling was mutual.

I dressed quickly in a red satin dress with a black lace overlay. The neckline had a nice V to it that showed off my extreme pregnancy cleavage quite nicely. I located a pair of black heels from the back of my closet that I almost never got to wear, and I was just coming downstairs when the pizza arrived.

"There's cash in my purse," I told Eric in case he didn't have any on him. We usually didn't carry any.

"Thanks," he said, and went into my purse. He paid the delivery boy while Jessica took the pizza into the kitchen to get Ian set up. Eric finally turned to look at me after he put my wallet back in my purse, and his eyes visibly darkened. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," I smiled at him and leaned in to whisper, "I think you'll really like what's underneath."

"I fucking love you," he whispered back.

"I love you too," I kissed his cheek. "Did you go over everything with Jessica?"

"Yes. I think we're good to go whenever."

"Okay. Then let's go say goodnight to the boy and get out of here while we still can," I reached for his hand and pulled him into the kitchen behind me. "We're gonna head out now."

"You look pretty, Mommy," Ian said when he looked up at me.

"Thanks, baby," I leaned down and kissed his temple. "Are you going to be a good boy for Jessi and listen to what she tells you?"

He nodded, and I hoped he planned on sticking to it.

"Jess, all of the important numbers are on the fridge just in case you need them. I'm not sure where we're going, but Eric and I both have our phones with us just in case, so you call us if you need anything, or if he's giving you too much trouble," I told her.

"Will do," she said. "Ian's always an angel for me."

"She gets the angel and we get the Snitch," I looked at Eric and shook my head.

"Love will do things to a man's heart," Eric smiled at me.

"Clearly. I think you're proof of that," I smiled back at him.

"Awwww," Jessica said, looking at us with gooey teenager eyes.

"Someday I'll tell you what Eric was like before we got together," I told Jessica and Eric cringed.

"And on that note, we leave," Eric said, and went over to Ian to give him a kiss goodbye. "Be good, little man."

"I will," Ian said and took another bite of his pizza.

"Have fun you two," I said over my shoulder as Eric pulled me out of the kitchen.

We took Eric's car, which was a nice change of pace for me. No car seat in the back, for starters, and there was no kids music crammed in the stereo. For a few hours, at least, we weren't parents; we were just a married couple.

"So where are we going?" I asked once we were on the road.

"I got us reservations at the Italian restaurant you've been reading about, and then we're going dancing."

"Sounds like fun," I smiled over at him. "I'm surprised you didn't just do the hotel thing."

"Well..." he began, but trailed off.

"What?" I wanted to hear the rest of what he was thinking.

"I might have slipped Jess some extra money to stay a little late... and I also may have gotten us a hotel room."

"She has school tomorrow!" I said but was grinning like a mad woman.

"Which is why I'm counting on you to do the responsible thing and choose to skip the dancing."

I laughed and said, "We can dance in the hotel room."

"And that's why I married you. Also why I brought your iPod."

"Sneaky, sneaky. I like it," I leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"I can't wait to see what you have on under that dress."

"Want a hint?" I offered.

"Yes, please."

"It's red."

"Fuck," he groaned. "Can we skip dinner too?"

"If you want," I shrugged.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"Well yeah, but there's always room service."

"You're just assuming that I got a hotel with room service?"

"Eric, you have never been the sleazy motel guy before. I sincerely doubt you suddenly became that guy."

"Alright then, hotel it is. I'll call and cancel the reservations. We can go to the restaurant when you feel less like sexing," he smiled.

"I'm not even sorry," I let my hand land in his lap.

"Me either."

My hand moved absently in Eric's lap, making him shift a little and shoot me dirty looks while he made the necessary phone calls to cancel the reservations he'd made. It probably was unfair, especially since it meant he was going to be walking into the hotel with a tent in his pants.

"Minx," he said after he hung up. "I do have to go check us in when we get there, you know."

"I know," I just kept on smiling.

"You're getting fucked through that hotel mattress when we get there."

"Good."

A few minutes later Eric pulled up to the nicest hotel in the next town over. I almost felt like a high-class hooker.

"Well this definitely isn't a pay by the hour establishment," I said as Eric parked the car.

"Only the best for my wife," he said, and kissed my hand. "I didn't want you to feel like a hooker."

"I don't feel like a hooker," I promised him and slid out of the car.

"You definitely don't look like one," he said. "And this place is classy, so they won't say anything about us not having bags."

"I'm not too worried about it. We're married. We have a child. I'm pregnant again. Obviously we have sex," I took the hand he offered me.

"Pretty much," he smiled. "I don't really care what anyone thinks. It's not like I'm running for congress."

"Want me to walk in front of you?" I giggled after looking down a little. I'd definitely succeeded in riling him up in the car.

"Please," he said.

We walked into the hotel with Eric behind me, and headed straight for the check-in desk. I stepped out of the way so Eric could deal with the clerk, and then we were given a room key. Since we didn't have bags to bring with us, there was no need for a bellboy to accompany us upstairs.

"That was easy," I said once we were on our way to the elevators.

"Now the hard part," he said, and hit the up button. "Do we order room service first, or fuck first?"

"You're the organizer of this evening," I leaned into him. "I'm just along for the ride."

"I say we order food, fuck, eat, then fuck some more."

"I love the way your brain works," I said as the elevator doors opened.

"I do too."

We stepped into the elevator and I barely had the button pressed for our floor when Eric was pinning me against the wall, trapping my hands over my head and kissing me rather roughly. It was going to be a good night.

"I can't wait to be buried deep inside you," he said.

"Soon," I breathed and the elevator door dinged just as Eric was moving to my neck.

He pulled away quickly, and we made our way to the room. Eric opened the door with the keycard and we went in to check the room out. It was huge, and lovely. I was actually a little sad we would only be in it for a few hours.

"This is a beautiful room," I smiled and walked toward the enormous windows with creamy drapes hanging at either end.

"We should come here for our next anniversary," Eric said, and then he started looking around for the room service menu.

"That would be nice," I said as I looked out at the amazing view.

The great thing about where we lived was that no matter where we were in town, or in the towns that surrounded ours, the views were always spectacular. Everything looked like it had hardly been touched. I liked knowing that our son, and this new baby we were waiting to meet, would be growing up in a place where they could run around in the yard, or ride their bikes up and down the block without worrying they'd be kidnapped or hit by a car.

"Found the menu," he said. "Let's order some food so I can start enjoying my dessert."

"And here I thought I was your appetizer," I smirked and kicked off my shoes before jumping up onto the enormous bed in the center of the room. "Ian would go bananas for a bed like this," I said as I bounced with my landing.

"Ian says to eat dessert first, and that's sounding really good to me," he said.

I would have argued that Ian was a toddler, but I was about to benefit from my son's wisdom so I kept my trap shut about it.

"What's the menu like?" I asked while Eric looked it over and paced beside the bed.

"It all looks pretty good," he said. "And there's Italian food on here, so we can technically stick to our plan."

"Good. I want something loaded with cheese. This kid is going to make me gain double what I did with Ian; I can feel it," I sighed.

With Ian it was sweets. With this new baby it was dairy.

"You'll still be gorgeous to me."

"You're just hoping my boobs will get bigger," I teased as he sat down on the bed next to me.

"And?"

"And if they get any bigger I'm going to need wheelbarrows to cart them around in."

"No you won't," he chuckled. "I will be giving you more massages though."

"That works for me," I sighed and realized I was getting way too comfortable when the sigh became a yawn.

"Oh hell no," Eric said, and pounced on me. "You will not be using this bed for sleeping tonight, so get that out of your head right now."

"But it's so comfy," I smiled lazily.

"Sookie, if you fall asleep I will be so ticked off."

"I won't," I promised.

"Good," he smiled and then kissed me. "Now let's order some food."

"Pick whatever sounds cheesiest."

"Alright," he said, and picked up the hotel phone to order. He ended up getting a couple of things, cheese stuffed manicotti for me and spaghetti for him, plus some dessert. When he hung up, he said, "It'll be about an hour."

"Think that'll be enough time for you to have dessert?" I smirked.

"More than enough," he grinned, then kissed me. "I want you to be loud too. We don't have little ears to worry about."

"I do miss being loud," I shifted on the bed and Eric was more than willing to unzip the back of my dress for me.

"It's one of my favorite things about sex."

I turned around and let my dress fall down around my knees rather unceremoniously to reveal the red and black lingerie I was wearing. My favorite part was the little ruffles on the hips of the panties I had on. It was cute and hit a little bit of the bump that was getting bigger every day.

"Fuck me," Eric said, practically drooling as he took in the sight of me.

"I plan to," I said and shifted awkwardly to get the dress the rest of the way off.

Eric got up and pulled me to him to kiss me, letting his hands roam where they please. "I'm not sure I'll ever get tired of your body," he said.

"That's good since it keeps changing," I reached out and started unbuttoning his shirt.

"They're good changes though."

"I could do without the stretch marks," I sighed.

"Stop it," he said. "Those are there because of our son, who is the greatest thing we ever did. If I could have the marks on me instead, I would."

"I love what they represent... I just wish they didn't look like that," I explained. I'd lost all the baby weight, but my body just wasn't the same.

"I wish you didn't see it like that. You're still that hot woman I fucked all over the place down in Mexico to me."

"I know. You do a very good job of making me feel beautiful, and I appreciate that," I reached for his hand and put it on my bump.

"I can't wait to meet this one," he said with a small smile. "I'm so glad things happened with us the way they did."

"Yeah, it all worked out pretty well," I agreed and then turned thoughtful. "Do you remember when we were up in that hot air balloon and you asked me about the fear?"

"Yeah," he said, looking up at me instead of my bump.

"Did you ever get that feeling?"

"Yes and no. I'm afraid of losing you and Ian, but not like I'd imagined."

"What does that mean?" I shifted and sat Indian style on the bed.

"I used to think I was going to fuck something up and we'd break up. Now it's more like, this thing in the back of my mind that I know that my biggest fear is losing my wife and child. I'm not sure I could come back from that."

"I think about that too sometimes... what I would do if I lost you or Ian... it's not a pretty picture," I confessed.

"I don't really want to talk about this," he said, and looked away quickly.

"Well not now, but we should in case something happens. The kids need to be situated," I reached for his hand and then leaned over him. "I didn't mean to bum you out."

"I can't let anything happen to you, Sookie, or to Ian. You two are the only things that truly matter to me."

"I know, but sometimes things happen that neither of us can control. We just need to be prepared for it, that's all."

I thought back to when Ian was about a year old and got a nasty case of the stomach flu, or something like it. We ended up taking him to the emergency room because he couldn't seem to keep anything down. It turned out he had an ear infection as well, and the medication they gave him through an IV ended up being something he was allergic to. Of course no one knew that at the time, but it was scary as hell. I can safely say that was the worst night of my life.

I didn't mention that to Eric, though. He was already looking like someone had kicked his puppy.

"I can't think about it like that at the moment. I can schedule an appointment with my lawyer so we can get a living will drawn up, but just thinking about that makes me think about why it would be needed, and dammit!" He sat up and put his head in his hands. "Do you remember when Ian was in the hospital?"

"I was just thinking about it but I didn't want to bring it up," I stared down at the comforter.

"It scared me to death," he admitted. "I thought... At one point that night with the drug they gave him, I thought he was going to die."

"I know. I thought it too," I climbed into his lap and hugged him. "But he's fine. Now we can barely keep up with him."

"But he was so small, and helpless," he said. His voice cracked a little and his arms wrapped around me. "I don't want to feel like that ever again."

"Me either," I squeezed him back.

I gave him a few minutes to work through whatever was in his head before I attempted to change the subject. If I let Eric fall too far down the rabbit hole we might as well cancel dinner and just go home. Knowing him, he would probably spend an hour watching Ian sleep once we got home anyway.

"Hey, I was thinking maybe we could take Ian up in a hot air balloon this summer. I think he'd like it, and if nothing else he'd get a good laugh out of me cowering for the first fifteen minutes," I suggested.

"Only if we strap him in."

"Strap him into what?"

"To the basket. What if he falls out?"

"There's no way to strap him in. We'd have to hold him the whole time."

"Velcro?"

I couldn't help laughing and rested my forehead against his shoulder. "You're a nut," I looked at him when I sobered up a little, but he seemed mostly serious. "I really love you, you know that?"

"I do," he said. "And I love you too."

"Good. Now I say we stop talking about all this stuff that makes you have sad puppy face and make out until dinner gets here. Does that work for you?"

"Yeah," he smiled. "That works for me."

"Good," I pulled his face to mine and kissed him.

**oOoOoOo**

I sincerely hoped Jessica wouldn't notice my slightly smudged makeup, or the fact that my hair definitely looked a little like it had been slept on. Eric and I got home a few minutes late, but I refused to keep her past eleven thirty since she had school the next day. Jessica was curled up on our couch with the TV on mute and a book in her hands when we got home.

"Sorry we're late," I apologized as I slipped my shoes off.

"It's okay," she smiled, a little too knowingly. "He was great. We worked on letters tonight. He's so smart, Mrs. Northman."

"A little too smart sometimes," I ran my fingers through my hair and then grabbed the money I owed her from my purse. "Thank you for staying late. We really appreciate it," I said as I handed her the cash.

"It was no problem. I'd just be sitting at home awake anyway," she said as she stuffed the cash in her pocket. "There's a little pizza left, by the way. And he went to bed with no fuss. Passed out like a light by 8:30."

"Good, I'm glad he didn't give you any trouble," I watched as she gathered up her stuff.

"He never does. Let me know when you need me again," she smiled.

"Sure thing," I walked her to the door. One of us always watched to make sure she made it fine across the lawn just to be on the safe side. You never knew if there was some random psycho waiting to snatch her. We blamed that on being the slightly paranoid parents of a toddler. "Thanks again. Have a good night, Jessica," I said as she stepped outside.

"You too," she said with a little wave and headed across the lawn to her house.

Once she was a safely inside her own home I closed the back door and made sure to flip the bolt over. I had no idea where Eric had disappeared to, although I was willing to bet he was already parked upstairs beside Ian's bed. I set the alarm we'd had installed not because of crime, but in case Ian ever figured out how to get one of the doors unlocked to let himself outside. Like Jessica said, he was a smart little boy.

I turned off the lights and TV, and then headed upstairs after checking to make sure the front door was locked, too. As I expected, I found Eric sitting on the edge of Ian's bed. His little cheeks were flushed and his hair was slightly matted to his forehead. He was wearing his favorite Curious George pajamas, and clutching the little stuffed lamb that Eric had given me the day Tara's twins were born.

"You okay?" I whispered and bent to kiss the top of Eric's head.

"Yeah," he whispered, and reached up to touch the hand I'd put on his shoulder. "He's just so small."

"He is," I agreed and rubbed his shoulder.

"I hate that anything could happen to him and we can't stop it."

"Me too," I kissed his head again. "Let's not think about it anymore. Right now he's safe, and sound asleep right down the hall. Before we know it he'll be bouncing in our bed to wake us up."

"Can I sleep in here with him tonight?"

"Why don't you just bring him to bed with us?" I suggested.

Ian was a heavy sleeper. Eric picking him up would be nothing to him.

"Good idea," he said, and very carefully picked our little boy up and carried him to our bedroom. Eric laid him down in the middle of the bed, and then we got ready to join him.

I went to the closet and pulled off my dress, thankful we had done the sex thing in the hotel. Not that I didn't enjoy sex at home but Eric was right about little ears. I was forever paranoid that Ian was going to walk in and catch us in the act. Of course, at the age of three he didn't understand what it was we were doing, but that didn't mean he needed to catch the show. Especially since it would be easy for him to think Eric was hurting me, when nothing could be further from the truth.

Since Ian was in bed with us that meant I had to locate a pair of pajamas. Once I found a pair of shorts and an old Bruce Springsteen t-shirt that had been my dad's, I went to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. After that I wound my hair up on a messy bun and tied it in place with the elastic that was always on my left wrist. When I got back to our bedroom, Eric was already stretched out on his side of the bed, staring right at Ian.

"It's a good thing he's such a heavy sleeper. If you stared at me like that it would wake me up," I whispered as I turned off the light and climbed up into bed.

He smiled a little. "I know it's weird, I just... I don't want to look away from him."

"As long as you don't expect to have him in here every night. He needs to sleep in his own bed," I turned onto my side so we were face to face.

"Just for tonight," he said. "I promise. I just need him in here for tonight."

"That's fine. You owe me a goodnight kiss, though," I told him.

He carefully leaned over Ian and kissed me. "I love you."

"I love you too. Sweet dreams, baby," I smiled at him in the darkness and reached over to rest my hand on top of his before I closed my eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>There would have been an update if the site wasn't so fail. We'll be updating this story daily, for those of you who were wondering about that. Thanks for reading!<strong>


	3. Simple Life

Chapter 3: Simple Life

I held Ian's hand as we climbed the steps for Lorena's cafe. In his other hand he clutched a few blooms from our backyard to give to Jessica. He had been intent on doing it ever since Eric told him girlfriends liked getting flowers. My son was an epic flirt.

"Okay, do you remember what to say?" I asked him once we stepped inside and Ian nodded.

"I got this, Mommy," he said with confidence and let go of my hand to approach Jessica.

"Hi, Ian," she greeted him warmly with a huge smile.

"Hi Jessi. These for you," he extended his fistful of flowers.

"Oh thank you," she said as she took the flowers. "They're very pretty."

"You welcome," he hugged her leg.

"You're very sweet," she said, and squatted down to give him a kiss on the cheek.

Ian giggled a little, which just made him even cuter. Then he blushed and ran back to me.

"He's modest after all. Who knew?" I smiled at Jessica.

"I certainly wouldn't have guessed," she laughed. "How are you, Mrs. Northman?"

"Pretty good, thanks. How about you?" I held Ian's hand and led him up to the counter.

"Mommy can I get a cupcake?" Ian asked when his eyes landed on the case to the left of us.

"No, we have plenty of treats at home," I said and he looked like he was going to pitch a fit. "Ian..." I said in a tone of warning.

He let go of my hand to cross his arms over his chest in a pout.

"I'm good. Just studying a lot. Dad likes straight A's."

I nodded and said, "All parents do. Just do the best you can."

I didn't know Jessica's father very well since Bill mostly kept to himself. He would make small talk with me if we happened to be out in our yards at the same time, but unlike most people, he shied away from Ian. He seemed downright uncomfortable whenever Ian would ask him questions, or try to get him to play. After a while Ian started to sort of cower away from Bill whenever he saw him. I swear that boy would suddenly be clinging to my legs like a hurricane was trying to blow him away.

"Thankfully I like to read, so studying isn't so bad," she said. "Did you come to see Mom?"

"I did. I found that recipe she was asking about, and Lafayette was kind enough to tweak it a little to omit those spices she said she wasn't so crazy about," I said and reached into my purse.

"Oh good! She'll be so excited. Let me go get her," she said and went into the back area of the cafe.

"Mommy I want a cupcake," Ian tried again.

"No," I said firmly and he stomped his foot. "Ian, if you're going to behave like that we're going home and no stops at the diner to see Daddy first."

"Moooooooooom!" he whined.

"One..." he continued to moan. "Two..."

Ian huffed and then turned away from me. Terrible two's hadn't quite ended yet for my son, but he was getting much better.

Lorena and Jessica came back out, and Lorena smiled warmly at me. "Sookie, hello. How are you?"

"I'm good, how are you?" I reached for Ian when he started to wander a little.

"Very good, thank you. Jessica said you brought that recipe?"

"I did," I handed the paper over to her. "I had Lafayette take a look at it for me to see what spices could be substituted and he did a test run on it to make sure everything came out right so you should be all set."

Ian looked up at Lorena and said, "Hi Rena."

"Hi, Ian," she smiled down at him. "Do you get a cupcake today?"

"No, not today," I answered quickly before Ian could. Usually he was pretty honest, but there were times when he was willing to risk it.

"But Mooooooooooooooom," he whined again and stuck out the lip.

"I said no," I said firmly and scooped him up before he could run off.

Of course that was when the kicking started along with the tears.

"I'm sorry," I apologized as the crying turned into sobbing.

"You know, we just test baked a new product today. They're mini-cupcakes. About a fourth the size of your typical cupcake," Lorena said, and Ian perked up a little.

"And if Ian wouldn't have had a fit I might consider it, but I don't want to encourage him," I said with a tight smile.

"Darn, I was hoping we could get a taste-tester," she said.

"Maybe another time," I said and tried to keep Ian from kicking me in the stomach. "I'm sorry to run, but I should get him home. I think someone needs a nap."

"Please thank Lafayette for me," she said. "It was very nice of him to go to all that trouble to get it right."

"I sure will. Ian can you say goodbye to Mrs. Compton?" I asked as calmly as I could.

He made a noise that indicated that he wasn't speaking to anyone and then thrashed a little more. Oy.

"Bye, Ian," Jessica said.

Ian didn't even acknowledge Jessica, which was a pretty big deal. I offered an apologetic smile to both women and said, "Sorry. I'll see you guys later."

"It's alright, Sookie," Lorena said with a sympathetic smile. "Bring back my little taste-tester when he's in a better mood."

"Will do," I said and turned to leave.

Fighting Ian into his car seat was all kinds of fun, and I was more than relieved when I saw Eric was already home when we got there. Ian had screamed the whole way back. I was trying not to lose it myself by the time I came to a stop, and thankfully Eric came over to spring Ian from his car seat.

"Ian Adam Northman," Eric said firmly when he opened the door. "Stop that screaming right now."

Of course he didn't. I took a deep breath and held it for as long as I could before letting it out slowly. Eric took Ian out of the car and I stayed there for a minute to collect my patience and sanity. Ian was pretty good most of the time, but when he _did_ have tantrums they were always brutal. Caving would have been easy, but I wouldn't do it. Caving would ensure I had a little monster that grew into a much bigger one and the things he would want would be bigger than a cupcake eventually.

When I got in the house I heard the screaming coming from the living room. Eric had put Ian on a chair in the corner for a time out. We tried to avoid spanking him unless he really, really freaked out. I wasn't sure Eric had ever had to spank him, but I had to in the store once. It was just a swat on the butt, but he knocked it off.

"What caused this one?" Eric asked me as he pulled me into his arms for a much needed hug.

"I wouldn't let him have a cupcake from the cafe," I sighed, feeling like the worst mom ever.

"And you gave him a good reason right?"

"I told him we already have plenty of treats here at home."

"And then he threw a fit?"

"After being told repeatedly that he couldn't have one. When I picked him up he really lost it."

Eric sighed. "No dessert for him tonight. He didn't kick you in the stomach did he?"

"No, but not for lack of trying," I pulled back a little. "I hate when he does that in public. I feel like the worst mother ever and everyone always stares at me like I taught him to act that way."

"Every parent has toddlers that throw fits in public. You can't avoid it."

"I know, and I would rather he have a fit when he doesn't get his way then let him have whatever he wants, but it still sucks," I rubbed my eyes. "I think he's overtired, too, so that doesn't help."

"When he calms down I'll take him up for a nap and have a talk with him," he said, and rubbed my back.

"Thank you," I leaned against him for another couple of seconds.

The screaming slowed down to that awful hiccupping part of crying where I always worried he couldn't breathe, even though he was always fine when he calmed himself down.

"I'll get him," Eric said. "Why don't you go lie down too? You look like you're about to get a headache."

"I'm going to get dinner in the oven first, and then I'll be upstairs," I stretched up to kiss his cheek. "Thank you."

"Love you," he smiled.

"Love you too," I said and then headed for the kitchen.

I pulled stuff out of the fridge to get dinner started and listened while Eric had a little conversation with Ian about the fit he'd just had.

"Are you done?" Eric asked him.

"Uh huh," Ian sniffled.

"Want to tell me what happened?"

"I want a cupcake. Mommy say no," he sniffled more.

It broke my heart to hear him crying like that, especially when I could hear the remorse in his voice.

"And did Mommy tell you why she said no?"

"Cuz we have treats," Ian recalled.

"Isn't that a good reason for you not to have a cupcake?"

I peeked around the corner to see Ian nod his head.

"So you didn't really need to throw a fit, did you?"

Ian shook his head that time and sniffled some more.

"I want you to go in the kitchen and apologize to your mother, and then you're going to take a nap," Eric said, and lifted Ian from his lap and set him on his feet.

Ian walked like he was going to the gallows and found me standing there waiting for him. He looked up at me with the saddest eyes I'd ever seen and I knelt down in front of him.

"I sorry, Mommy," he said with his eyes trained on the floor.

"It's okay, baby. Thank you for apologizing," I said and he threw his arms around my neck. I hugged him back and rubbed his back soothingly.

Eric came into the kitchen a few minutes later and I was still holding Ian. I was ten seconds from bursting into tears myself, but was reluctant to let go of our son.

"Ian, are you ready to take a nap?" I kissed his head and he nodded against my shoulder.

"Come on, buddy," Eric said, and held out his arms for Ian.

Ian turned his body toward Eric, and he grabbed onto him. I gave Eric my own version of The Lip and then went back to prepping dinner. I had just put the roast into the oven and was wishing I could have a glass of wine when Eric came back downstairs.

"Is he sleeping?" I asked and washed my hands.

"Yeah, he's out," he said, and hugged me from behind. "That's always so rough on you."

"It is. I just want to hug him, but of course that's the last thing he wants because I'm the dragon lady who doesn't let him have what he wants," I leaned back against him. "I know I'm doing the right thing but it still sucks."

"I know. And you did good," he said. "Ian told me he wants to apologize to Miss Rena, and he wants to pick you some flowers."

My eyes well and I said, "He's such a good boy."

"Does that really surprise you?" he asked. "He's your son."

I snickered and said, "You should have seen him with Jessica before the fit though. He brought her flowers today. It was the cutest thing. I wish I would have had a video camera."

"So we can traumatize him when he's sixteen and starts dating for real?"

"I was just thinking because it was so sweet, but your reason is a good one too," I closed my eyes and yawned.

"Come on," he said, and took my hand. "We're going to lie down for a nap."

"Let me set the timer. I have laundry I need to do today too," I said and set the timer on the microwave for an hour.

I followed Eric back to the living room and he laid down on the couch first. I was mostly lying on top of him, but sort of squeezed between him and the back of the couch. I was immediately comfortable and my eyes wasted no time closing.

"Between Ian and the Sequel," I had taken to calling the new baby that sometimes, "I'm wiped out."

"I've been meaning to ask you," he said, his fingers running through my hair. "Do you want me to start taking him to work with me a couple mornings or afternoons a week so you can get some rest?"

I yawned and said, "If you want to. The morning would probably be better since he usually naps after lunch. I could get more of my chores done in the morning without him under my feet. We could have lunch together and then it would be naptime for him pretty much right after that."

"Good. I'll bring it up to him tonight to see if he likes the idea."

"Are you kidding me? He would go to work with you all day, every day if you let him."

"Then he'll be properly excited and more willing to not throw fits."

"I hope so," I sighed. "It might actually be a good idea to get him into that habit for when the new baby is around. I won't be able to hold him as much as I do now."

Come to think of it, that was probably going to be harder on me than it would be on Ian.

"He'll adjust, and so will you."

"I know. An extra set of arms would be nice, though. Think you can figure out a way to get me one of those?" I smiled against his chest.

"I'll do my best," he said.

"You're the best," I yawned again.

"As are you, now go to sleep."

"Yes sir," I mumbled and let myself drift off.

All too soon the timer was buzzing away in the kitchen. I grumbled but got up to go shut it off. I checked the roast in the oven. It smelled delicious already and went about making myself a snack since it would be a few hours until dinner was ready, and the Sequel was already hungry. I was sitting at the kitchen table eating a peanut butter and jelly when Eric came into the kitchen, and I offered him a quarter of my sandwich.

"I used the chunky peanut butter," I warned him when he took it.

"Oh, ew," he said and handed it back.

"You're so weird," I rolled my eyes and took another bite of my sandwich.

"I don't like the texture," he said.

"I know. That's why I warned you," I smiled.

There was a knock at the kitchen door and I looked up to see Lorena standing there with a little bag in her hands. I waved her inside, but Eric had to step over to flip the latch up first.

"Hey, Lorena, sorry about earlier. Ian was in a mood," I apologized yet again.

"Oh it's alright. I've seen little ones have worse fits than that," she said, and held out the bag. "I brought you some of those cupcakes for Ian."

"Oh, thanks," I smiled at her as Eric took the bag since he was closer.

"I'm sorry if I caused a little of that fit by offering them."

"It's alright. Ian... well, it was time for him to have a meltdown. He hasn't had one in a couple of weeks," I smiled wearily. "I'm sure you don't miss those days at all."

"Not really. Jessica's could be downright awful, and Bill just doesn't have the tolerance for them."

"That's a shame. I mean, no parent wants to listen to their child scream and cry, but it's part of the job," I wiped my hands on a napkin and got up to refill my glass of milk. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"No, that's alright. I need to get home and get Bill his lunch," she said with a smile. "I hope to see you both again soon."

"Bye, Lorena," Eric said, and held the door for her. "Thanks for these too."

"You're welcome."

"See you later," I waved although she didn't see me. Once she was gone I asked, "Is it just me, or does she almost seem afraid of him?"

"Maybe they're just into that kind of thing?"

"What kind of thing is that?" I plopped down to finish my sandwich.

"I don't know; I'm not into it."

I snorted and said, "You're no help. All I know is that sometimes the way he looks at her... it gives me the heebie jeebies. And I swear he must think Ian is dipped in anthrax the way he avoids getting near him."

"Maybe he's just not a kid person," he shrugged.

"But he _has_ a kid. He _adopted_ a kid, for crying out loud," I pointed out.

It was pretty obvious that Jessica wasn't Bill and Lorena's biological child. She looked nothing like either of them, for starters, but Jessica herself had confirmed that for me. They had adopted her when she was just eleven weeks old, and she had known from the time she was a little girl that she was adopted. It was easy to see that Lorena enjoyed being a mother, but with Bill I sometimes wondered just how much he liked being a father.

To any outsiders looking in on their family, it would be hard to see the cracks. Being that we were their next door neighbors, we had been privy to a few family arguments. It was never anything too serious, but I knew Bill was hard on Jessica, and demanded that she bring home nothing but A's on her report card. He was strict, to put it nicely, and I sometimes worried about Jessica as a result.

"Maybe he just did it to make his wife happy."

"For Jessica's sake I hope that's not true," I sagged a little, but feared Eric might be right. "I feel bad for her sometimes. I mean, I know Lorena loves her, but Bill... sometimes I get the feeling that she feels like she's just this weight around Bill's neck."

Eric frowned. "I know what you mean, but being a bad dad isn't a crime, and it's not something we need to get involved in. I think it helps Jessica to see how we are with Ian and with each other. Maybe that's all she needs."

"Maybe," I sighed.

There was another knock at the back door and I looked up to see Bill standing there with his hands stuffed in his pockets and a slightly annoyed look on his face.

"Hi Bill," I smiled at him as warmly as I could.

"Mrs. Northman," he nodded formally. No matter how many times I told him to call me Sookie, he never did. "Mr. Northman," he nodded to Eric.

"Bill," Eric nodded at him. "What can we do for you?"

"Lorena said she was coming over to drop something off for your son, but she's been gone for almost a half hour now. I don't suppose she's still here?" Bill's eyes settled on the bag Lorena had brought us.

"She just left a few minutes ago," Eric said.

Bill's eyes narrowed and said, "If you see her, please tell her I'm looking for her."

"Sure thing," Eric said.

"Thank you," Bill said crisply and then turned to walk away.

"See what I mean?" I whispered. "He's just creepy."

Bill was the kind of neighbor who was perfect on paper. He had a wife, child and a nice home. He kept his lawn neat and tidy. There was no loud music, or pets that barked at all hours of the night. He would wave when he saw us coming or going from our house, and if Eric needed a tool of some kind Bill was always more than willing to lend it. I didn't know what it was, exactly, but my gut just told me to stay away, and it seemed Ian's did the same.

"I do," he said, and watched Bill's retreating form as he walked across the yard again. "I can't imagine being that upset at you for not being home when I thought you should be."

"For Lorena's sake I hope she gets home soon," I shuddered to think what might happen.

Bill was a little on the scrawny side but that didn't mean a whole lot. I had no cause to say that he would hit his wife, but the look on his face indicated that she was definitely in some kind of hot water with him whenever she turned up.

"You don't think he'd ever hit her, do you?"

"I don't know. I guess it's possible," I shrugged.

"He's always... No, never mind."

"What?" I wanted to hear the rest of that.

"Well, it's just that he's always got his hands in his pockets."

"Yeah?"

"It could be nothing. I mean, he could just be comfortable like that. But what if he's really hiding something? Like scratches or bruising?"

"It could be," I said sadly. "I've never seen a bruise on Lorena, though, and I don't even want to think about him abusing Jessica. I'd turn his ass over to CPS so fast he wouldn't be able to say 'sideburns.'"

"Me too," Eric agreed. "And really, he knows Lorena's always in the public eye. Maybe he just knows how to hide them."

"I don't want to think about it," I shook my head.

Lorena and I weren't best friends or anything, but we talked on a pretty regular basis. I liked her quite a bit. She was a little older than me, by maybe fifteen years so it was like having an aunt, or an older sister living nearby. We'd swap stories sometimes and have coffee together in the morning if she came by. She was good with Ian, and made some of the best coffee cake I'd ever tasted. She was the warm and friendly sort, so it was easy to see where Jessica had gotten it from.

But when she spoke of Bill it was always with a forced warmth. At first I thought I was seeing things, that maybe I was reading too much into it. Over time, though, I started listening for the things she didn't say, and that was what concerned me the most. Something wasn't right in that house, but it was none of my business until Lorena made it my business.

"Mommy?" Ian called from upstairs.

I sighed and stood up to go meet him at the stairs. "I'm down here, baby!" I called back to him and a few seconds later Ian was holding onto the slats of the banister as he came down.

When he reached the bottom he held his arms up for me to pick him up, and when I did he kissed my cheek. All the bad things Eric and I had been talking about melted away with that kiss. We were raising our kid right, and that's what I needed to focus on.

"Mommy, I went in my Pull-Up," Ian told me.

"Aww that's okay, buddy. Let's go get you a new one. Is your bed wet?" I asked and he shook his head. "Good deal. How did you sleep?"

"Good," he said, and rested his head on my shoulder. "I want a snack."

"Okay. Dry pants first, and then we'll get you a snack," I promised and kissed the side of his head. "Did you have any dreams?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "I want a apple."

"A green one?" I tickled his side and he squirmed.

"Yes, Mommy," he giggled.

"You got it," I set him down once we were in the bathroom. "Do you need to go potty again?"

Ian shook his head and opened the cabinet where we kept his Pull-Ups. I was hoping he'd be using the toilet soon, but it was a slow process. Only having to change diapers for one would be fantastic, but I wasn't going to try and rush him. I knew potty training boys could take a while. For whatever reason, they didn't catch on quite as quickly as girls did.

I got Ian situated with a new Pull-Up, and as soon as he had his pants back on he was running for the kitchen. I followed to find that Eric was already cutting up an apple for Ian.

"Wash your hands, Snitch," I said and moved his little stool over so he could climb up and wash his hands.

"I need soap," he said, trying to reach for it, but his little arms weren't long enough.

"Magic word?" I reminded him.

"Please I need soap," he said, still reaching.

"Here you go," I pumped a little into his hands.

"Thank you," he said, and happily started rubbing it in.

"Do you want peanut butter with your apple slices?" I asked while watching him wash his hands. If I let him, he'd get suds everywhere.

"No, just the green."

"Got that, Eric?" I winked at him.

"Got it," he grinned back.

Ian finished washing his hands and I handed him a dishtowel to dry them on. When he was done he got down off his stool and put it where it belonged before going over to the kitchen table and climbing up into his booster seat. Eric set down a paper plate with apple slices on it, and I went to the fridge to get Ian some white grape juice.

"I'm going to get started on the laundry," I announced, and went to the little room just off the kitchen where the machines were. One of the best things about the house was the laundry chute with the drop from the second floor.

"Did you sleep good?" Eric asked Ian.

"Uh huh. This green is sour."

I bit back a chuckle at that.

"Yes it is," Eric laughed.

"I think I'm gonna like orange next," Ian informed his father.

"That's Mommy's favorite color!" I smiled at him from the laundry room.

The good thing about Ian going through phases with colors was that he would eat pretty much anything that was his favorite color of the moment. That meant he tried a lot of different things that he might not have otherwise. We definitely didn't have a super picky eater on our hands, and for that, I was grateful.

"Daddy, I should pick Mommy the orange flowers," he whispered to Eric, a little louder than a whisper should be.

"We'll do that before supper," Eric whispered back.

"What are you two whispering about?" I asked after getting a load of laundry started.

"Don't worry about it, Mommy," Ian said, and rolled his eyes.

"Oh, well, pardon me," I sat down at the table. "How's your apple?"

"It's okay," he said with a little shrug.

"What should we do after your snack?"

"I really want to play a game," Ian said.

"Oh yeah? Which one?"

"The one where you push the button on the board."

"The one that makes the popping sound and the dice jump?" I asked since we had a couple of games like that.

"Yes, that one!" he said, clapping excitedly.

"Okay. I think we can play that game," I nodded.

"Yay!"

"I'll go get it out," Eric said, and patted Ian's head as he walked behind him.

"You know, I think if you eat all your veggies with dinner tonight you get to watch a movie," I told Ian, who was probably thinking he won the lottery right about then.

We tried not to let him watch too much TV if we could help it. It was harder to avoid in the winter months, but since the weather had turned warmer we let him play outside as much as possible. He definitely slept better with all the fresh air he was getting.

"Can I pick it?" he asked.

"As long as it's not _Star Wars_," I said.

"No, Mommy, Harry Potter!"

"Which one?"

"The first one, with all the magic."

"Can Mommy take a nap?" I asked and he gave me squinty eyes of disapproval.

"You need to like the magic, Mommy."

"I like magic. Maybe Mommy's just tired," I suggested, but Eric came in and blew my cover.

"Nope, don't let her fool you Ian, Mommy hates magic."

I gasped and said, "I do not! I'm doing magic right now."

Ian narrowed his eyes and looked me up and down. "What magic?"

"There's a baby growing in my tummy," I shrugged.

"That's not magic, Mommy," Ian giggled.

"Yes it is!" I argued.

"Daddy?" Ian looked up at Eric. "Is that magic?"

Eric nodded. "It's a very, very hard magic to accomplish, buddy."

"But she's not using a wand," Ian said, and Eric tried not to laugh.

"Not anymore," I muttered under my breath.

"Not all magic requires a wand," Eric said. "Let's play the game."

"Then how did the baby get in there?" Ian asked.

"Yeah, Eric, how _did_ that happen?" I tilted my head so the master of all things magic could explain it to our son.

"Well, when Mommy's and Daddy's love each other, sometimes that love spills over and makes a baby," Eric explained, and I was ninety-nine percent sure he stole that from a movie.

Ian thought about it for a second but then asked, "But how does it make a baby?"

"It just does," Eric said, and started pulling the game pieces from the box. "It's magic."

Ian looked like he was going to ask another question, but I distracted him by asking, "Ian, what color do you want to be?"

"Green!"

"What color should Daddy be?"

"Red!"

"What about me?"

"Blue!"

"And who gets to go first?" I asked when Ian handed me my game piece.

"The dice pick," Ian said.

"Oh, that's right. I forgot," I said and Ian leaned forward to pop the bubble.

He held his hands up and said, "How many?"

"Let's count the dots," leaned over a little and so did he.

"There's a lot," he said.

He was getting better with counting, but it was hard to see inside that bubble sometimes, so I counted the dots for him, and he counted with me.

"There are nine dots," I said when we were done counting.

"Okay, your turn, Mommy."

"Do you want to push the bubble for me?" I asked, knowing that was his favorite part.

"Yes," he grinned and pushed on the bubble.

"How many did I get?" I asked him since there weren't as many dots.

He counted slowly, and then looked at me and said, "Six!"

"Good job, buddy!" I reached out to give him a high five and he slapped my palm hard.

"Daddy, your turn," he told Eric.

"You pop it for me," Eric smiled at him.

Ian reached over with a big grin on his face and pushed the button. He looked at Eric and asked, "How many?"

All of a sudden there was an argument brewing outside. It was hard to make out what, exactly, was being said but it was obvious that Bill had located Lorena, and he was thoroughly unhappy with her. Eric and I shared a look while Ian stared at Eric expectantly. He didn't care at all about what was going on with the neighbors. There was a game to play.

Eric looked into the bubble, and gave Ian a goofy grin. "Snake eyes. I only got two, which means I go last."

"I go first?" Ian asked with big, sparkling eyes.

"Yep, you go first," I said and watched him push the bubble again.

**oOoOoOo**

"He's out," I whispered after looking down to see Ian was sound asleep and leaned against Eric. We were only about a half hour into _Harry Potter_.

"You want to put him in bed, or me?"

"I'll take him up," I said and carefully shifted on the couch to get up.

Ian usually slept like the dead, but once he was awake that was it. And what might be a twenty minute nap seemed to give him another eight hours of energy that I knew Eric and I definitely didn't have. I lifted him carefully, cradling him just right, and carried him upstairs to his bedroom. Thankfully we'd had the foresight to have him put on his jammies and brush his teeth before the movie started. Fang followed behind me and as soon as I had Ian in bed, she plopped down near the foot of it to keep an eye on him.

"You're a good girl, Fang," I bent and scratched her head.

Eric was still her favorite.

Eric was still watching the movie when I got back downstairs, but that wasn't surprising. I took Ian's spot on the couch and rested my head on his shoulder.

"Fang is standing guard, well, in a manner of speaking," I told him with a small yawn.

"That dog is still the best gift ever," he said as he wrapped his arm around me.

"Better than the kid?" I snorted.

"The kid wasn't a gift, he was a blessing."

"Good point."

"I'm a wise sort of man," he said.

"Yes you are."

"So, not to sound like a nosy housewife, but what do you think that fight was about?"

I giggled and said, "I'm willing to bet it had something to do with his inability to make his own lunch."

"You know, I got that feeling too," he said with a chuckle. "He seemed like he needed her there because he can't do anything on his own."

"Or he just likes ordering her around," I suggested.

I was never more thankful that Eric wasn't one of those kinds of guys. We sure as shit wouldn't be married with two kids if he was.

"I'd like to try that with you sometime," he said. "Just to see what it's like to get slapped."

I laughed and sat upright. "I could just slap you right now and save you the trouble of trying to be mean to me."

"That, darling, would be spousal abuse."

"Then it's a good thing we don't get off on being mean to each other," I leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"Yes it is," he smiled and then frowned. "Do you think he might be abusing her? Even just mentally?"

"I honestly don't know. I've seen how she gets a little fidgety sometimes when he calls her inside, which makes me think it's possible. But I've never outright asked her. I mean, how do you bring something like that up in casual conversation. 'Oh, I got that recipe for you, and by the way, does your husband abuse you?'"

"It's definitely not something for polite conversation. I just hope he's not. Not only for Lorena, but for Jessica."

"Me too. I know he's hard on Jessica, though. It's a shame, too, because she's such a good kid," I sighed and leaned against him again. "I want our kids to do their best, but I would never make them feel awful about themselves if they weren't perfect."

"Kids aren't supposed to be perfect. I'm not going to act like I won't be disappointed if Ian fails everything in school. I expect him to keep his grades up. But I'm also not going to be mad at him if he drops below an A."

"Putting too much pressure on kids to be the people _we_ want them to be is no good. Just look at Ian... that boy has more personality in an eyelash than some do in their entire body. And it seems he may have inherited my stubbornness," I smiled.

"He definitely inherited your stubbornness," Eric laughed. "But if he ends up wanting to go to clown school, and that's what makes him happy, then I'll accept that."

"That boy _does_ like being the center of attention," I nodded.

"I'm not going to lie though, I'd be the most embarrassed parent at the clown school graduation."

"Oh come on! You mean you wouldn't wear a squeaky nose to show your support?"

He sighed and said, "If you cut me off, I would."

"Yeah, but if I put you in husband time out then I'm punishing myself," I reminded him. "I'd rather make you watch chick flicks."

"Fine, I'll wear the squeaky nose. And you know what, I think I'd be more disappointed if he became a lawyer or something."

"Not all lawyers are bad. I thought about doing that when I was younger since I like arguing with people," I said and he laughed quietly. "But then I remembered you don't get to pick your client, and I realized I'd have a real problem defending a scumbag."

"Exactly. And Ian has too good a soul to do that."

"The possibilities are endless. For now, I'd just really love it if he mastered using the toilet," I said wistfully.

"He'll get there. I've been working with him. He said he doesn't like holding it," he laughed.

"It's getting better. I almost hope this one is a girl because they learn quicker. I'm selfish like that," I shrugged.

"I kind of want a girl too," he admitted.

"It would be nice to balance out the testosterone in here. It's not bad now, but in about ten years I might choke on it," I smirked.

"I just want a girl so I can have a daddy's girl."

"Ah yes, a willowy little thing with big blue eyes and a mop of tangled blonde hair that follows you everywhere you go, right?"

"My heart melted just a little."

"Well, I guess we'll find out next month," I patted my little bump.

"And we're not going to be disappointed if it's a boy," he said, putting his hand on my stomach.

"Of course not. In a lot of ways that would probably make things easier since we still have so much of Ian's old stuff."

"Plus if it's a boy, we get to keep trying until we make a girl."

"Hold on there, cowboy. Just how many babies do you think I'm popping out?" I asked with an amused smile.

"As many as it takes to get a girl," he said matter-of-factly.

"And what if you only make boys?"

"Then we'll stop at around fifteen."

I blinked. That's all I had.

"I'm fucking with you," he laughed. "I think we should stop around eleven."

"You better find a uterus to rent," I told him.

"Okay, okay, I'll come down to eight, but that's my final offer."

"You are out of your mind," I shook my head. "How does a guy who went from not ever wanting to get married or have kids become the most married man in America and bordering on wanting to be one of those creepy compound families you see on TLC?"

"How am I the most married man in America?"

"You just are. Deal with it," I poked him playfully. "Or are you really planning your escape route while you're supposedly at work?"

"Of course not, I love you very much," he said, and gave me a kiss. "But if you're not willing to give me eight babies, then I'll have to divorce you."

"What in the world do we need eight babies for?" I rolled my eyes. "We have a hard enough time keeping up with the one sleeping upstairs."

"I would assume that by the time we hit number four we'll be experts."

"And?"

"And the second half of the litter will be a breeze. Besides, it's not like you'd have to have eight pregnancies. We might get lucky and have a set of twins, or triplets."

"Ha!" I snorted. "And I can't believe you just referred to any potential children we might have as a litter. There'll be no birthing babies in a box under the stairs for me, mister."

"Don't you want enough for a sports team?"

"Since when do you like any sport that isn't that Quid-watever that isn't even a real sport?" I pointed out.

He removed his arm from around my shoulders and crossed his arms over his chest. "Quidditch," he said tensely.

"Yes, that, and it's not real," I said.

"It's real to me," he grumbled.

I patted his leg and said, "I know, sweetie, but our kids are never going to fly around on brooms and chase that gold thing."

"The _snitch!_" he said, and got up from the couch and headed into the kitchen.

"Eric!" I called after him and forced myself not to laugh. He got so testy about that stuff.

"Do you want any ice cream?" he called back, still sounding pissy.

"Only if you'll stop being such a grump."

"Will you stop getting the names of Harry Potter things wrong?" he asked, poking his head back in the living room.

"Probably not," I sighed. "But I still love you, my little gryffyndork."

"Say it properly," he said, cracking a little smile.

"Say what properly?"

"The name of my second favorite house."

"Slytherin?"

He looked at me so intensely that for a second I thought he was serious when he said, "You are dead to me," and walked back to the kitchen.

"Hufflepuff?" I tried again.

"That one's my favorite!" he yelled.

I lost it. I fell over laughing hysterically on the couch. I couldn't help it. The next thing I knew Eric was on top of me, holding my hands over my head.

"Why is that so funny?" he asked.

"Because you're so cute about it!" I said through my giggles. "Your face is all red."

"And that makes me cute about it?"

"You just get all huffy. Honey, I know this is important to you, and I have absolutely no issue with that whatsoever. I knew you were a nerd for this stuff a long time ago, but it's just never going to be important to me," I said and tried to sober myself up a little bit.

"That's okay, I just feel like you're making fun of me sometimes."

"You just take is _so_ seriously. It's a story, and that's all it will ever be."

That actually seemed to upset him a little, and he sat back, letting go of my wrists in the process. "It's not just a story."

"Then what is it if it isn't a story, Eric?" I stayed flat on my back and looked up at him, waiting for an explanation.

"It's... it's hard to explain. The characters aren't just characters in a book, they're friends, friends that you went through something with."

"I see," I said.

"You don't get it," he sighed, and turned away.

"Hey!" I sat up and waited for him to turn around. "Look, Eric, I may not understand _why_ it's important to you, but it is. It means something to you and that's all that matters. What I think doesn't."

"Yes it does."

"Why does it matter what I think?"

"Because you're my other half."

"Awwww..." I held my arms out to him. "Come here."

He reluctantly let me embrace him. "You still don't get it though."

"I may never, but that doesn't mean I love you any less. Besides, you get annoyed when I listen to Britney Spears."

"Listening to that awful singer and the Harry Potter series are such different things they don't even compare. They can't."

"Do you still love me even though I sing along horribly to mediocre music?"

"I couldn't ever not love you," he said.

"And I still love you even if you have a head full of knowledge about something that doesn't interest me. We don't have to be the same, Eric. I like that we're different when it comes to things like that."

"Just stop making fun of it."

"I wasn't making fun of it!" I said in my own defense. "And you should be proud of me for retaining what little knowledge I have."

"Just wait until Ian asks you to make him a Harry Potter costume for Halloween..."

"If he wants to be Harry Potter, that's fine by me. Although he'd probably make a better Draco with all that blond hair..."

He narrowed his eyes at me, but took a deep breath instead of saying anything.

"Look, when he wants to dress up like Hermoine I'll get worried," I said, hoping that would lighten his mood a little.

"So what if he does? She's the cleverest witch of her age."

I giggled and hugged him tighter.

"Are we done arguing about this now?" I asked after a minute.

"We were never arguing about it."

"Felt like we were," I sighed. "Does the offer for ice cream still stand?"

"There's no green."

I gasped and said, "Don't tell Ian that."

"I'm good with the strawberry though," he smiled.

"There's no rocky road left?" I pouted a little.

"Yeah, you can have that, I want the strawberry."

I grinned and watched him walk into the kitchen to get it. He came back a few minutes later with two bowls in his hands and handed one to me before sitting down beside me on the couch. The instant the ice cream hit my tongue, I moaned. I had a torrid love affair with chocolate and made no apologies for it.

"I can't believe you don't like this," I let my eyes close while I savored the flavor.

"Ehh," he said, and put a spoonful of strawberry in his mouth.

"It's the almonds, isn't it?"

"Yuuup."

"You're missing out, but that just means there's more for me," I said and took another big bite.

"Enjoy, I'll stick with my pink," he smiled.

When I finished my ice cream I waited until he was done and then took the bowls to the kitchen to rinse them and put them away in the dishwasher. Sully appeared and whimpered at the door to go out, so I went to the door and let him outside. I stepped out myself and wrapped the sweater I was wearing around myself a little tighter. The sky was crystal clear and stars were easy to see from our back patio. I looked to the left where the Comptons' house was.

The house was mostly dark, although I could see Jessica sitting at her desk. Her eyes were trained on something that I assumed was resting on her desk. I couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for her. A girl of fifteen shouldn't be feeling kind of pressure she was, and I assumed her father was the source of that pressure. A breeze kicked up and a chill ran through me that sent me back inside.

I curled up next to Eric on the couch and pulled down the blanket from the back of it to spread out on my legs. I had no idea what was going on in the movie but I knew Eric was engrossed in it so I kept quiet so as not to disturb him. About a half hour later the movie came to an end, and while he got up to put the DVD back in its case and out of Ian's reach, I went to the kitchen door to let Sully back inside.

"I'm going up to bed," I said once I had the kitchen door locked up.

"Me too," Eric said. "I'll be right behind you."

I blew him a kiss and then headed up the stairs. I stopped briefly in Ian's room to check on him. He'd kicked his covers off, which wasn't unusual for him. I swear he had space heater DNA in him somewhere. His cheeks were rosy and his hair was matted to his forehead. Just to be on the safe side I checked to make sure it was just his usual warmth and not a fever blooming. He was breathing fine, so I just assumed he was extra warm. I bent and kissed his forehead and then closed his bedroom door most of the way when I left.

Eric came up a few minutes later, probably after doing the same things I had just done in Ian's room. I was in the middle of brushing my teeth when he found me in the bathroom.

"Did you set the alarm?" I asked in a muffled voice since I was trying not to spit toothpaste everywhere.

"Yeah," he said, and went to the toilet to pee. Intimacy at its finest.

I thought about mentioning Ian feeling a little warmer than usual but decided to keep it to myself. If Eric hadn't checked on him already I knew that he would insist on bringing Ian back to bed with us after he did. One night a week sleeping with Ian between us was enough for me, thanks.

"Are you at the diner early tomorrow?" I asked after spitting my toothpaste out.

"Yeah, and I probably won't be home until dinnertime," he said. He came over to the sink and picked up his own toothbrush.

"Okay," I nodded and then stepped out of the bathroom to change clothes. I traded in my yoga pants and sweatshirt for a tank top and a pair of boyshorts.

"Do you and Ian want to come in for dinner? Laff's been wanting to see you again."

"Sure. Assuming there are no thermonuclear meltdowns around here," I smirked and went over to the bed to start pulling all the decorative little throw pillows off of it.

I heard him laugh, and then he started brushing his teeth. When he finished, he came into the bedroom and started stripping. It was completely unfair how beautiful his body stayed.

"So unfair," I shook my head and climbed into bed.

"What?" he asked as he climbed into bed wearing only his boxers.

"You get to have a six pack and I have this," I pointed to my growing belly, "spare tire that is growing into the Good Year blimp even as we speak. It's not fair."

"Do you want me to stop working out to make you feel better about birthing babies?"

"Don't you dare!" I smile at him.

"That's what I thought. Besides, I still find you very sexy, and that's all that matters, right?" he asked. "Well, I guess you should find yourself sexy too."

"Once the Sequel starts moving I'll feel better about all this. I wonder if this one will play with me like Ian did," I grinned, thinking back to the way I used to be able to poke Ian and he would poke back.

"I'm sure she will," Eric said, and rested his hand on my bump.

"So you want to make a bet about the gender of this kiddo?" I asked him as I snuggled into the pillows.

"Better than betting on whether or not it'll have all its fingers and toes," he said.

I laughed and said, "I still can't believe you said that to me. I'm in the middle of a panic attack, and you go proposing our kid might not have all its parts."

"I'm a dude, that's really my only excuse."

"You pick the strangest times to get all 'dude' on me," I sighed. "So, come on, wanna make a bet?"

"What are the terms?"

"I don't know. What do you want if you win?"

"A blowjob."

"Seriously?"

"A really, really good blowjob?"

"Okay, if that's what you want. If you win you get a really, really good blowjob," I agree to his terms.

"But what do you want if you win?"

"If I win, I get to pick our Halloween costumes this year," I grin, already with a pair in mind.

"That's all you want?"

"Yep, that's all I want. And you can't bitch about it. You just shut up and do what I tell you to when I win," I grinned at him.

His eyebrow rose, and he gave me that 'oh really?' face.

"I'm serious," I held out my hand. "I think it's another boy."

"And I think it's a girl," he said, and took my hand.

"So it's a bet?"

"It's a bet," he grinned.


	4. Society

Chapter 4: Society

I pulled into the parking lot at the diner just before the dinner rush was set to hit. Ian was singing some little song in the back seat that he'd made up all on his own. I couldn't really understand what he was singing about, but it was better than Kidz Bop any day of the damn week.

"Where are we, Ian?" I asked when I stopped the car.

"Sonny's!" he said with one of those flirty smiles on his face.

"No running inside, right?" I reminded him as I got out of the Jeep.

He nodded emphatically as he unbuckled his own booster seat, and let me help him down. I was glad he was at the age where he could do that stuff without much help from me because in a few more months it was going to be a hassle if I had to do it for him. He jumped down from the Jeep and held my hand as we walked through the parking lot to the back entrance. As soon as I let go of his hand he ran for Eric's office, immediately breaking the rule we'd _just _talked about.

"Ian!" I called his name sharply, but he was already turning the corner for Eric's office.

_Why do I even bother?_ I wondered to myself.

"Did you run in here?" I heard Eric ask when I got closer.

"Yes," Ian admitted.

"Ian..."

"Daddy," he said in that cute voice he used whenever he knew he was in trouble.

"You know the rule about running in here," Eric said, holding his ground.

"But I was excited!" Ian moved around the desk to climb on Eric's lap.

"I know that, but now you're getting scolded instead of hugs and kisses."

"No, I not," he wrapped his arms around Eric's neck.

"Ian, don't give me those puppy eyes," Eric said, but his firmness was waning. He was a sucker.

"Ian what did Mommy tell you would happen if you ran in the restaurant?" I asked from the doorway.

He turned and looked at me before saying, "I couldn't play with Laff."

We had gone over the rules at home, but I always reminded him about running in the restaurant when we were in the parking lot. There were too many people running around with hot plates, and Ian knew he wasn't supposed to go in the kitchen without having either Eric or I with him. The staff didn't need him underfoot while they were trying to work, and I didn't need my baby to accidentally deep fry his hand.

"Then I guess you're not playing with Laff," Eric said to him.

"But Daaaaad..." Ian whined and gave him The Lip.

"No whining. You knew the rule, and you broke it."

"You mean," he pouted.

"That's not very nice."

Ian just grunted and folded his arms over his chest, deep into his pout.

"I swear he had a nap today," I said from the doorway.

"He'll perk up when the waitresses start flirting with him," Eric smiled at me.

"No!" Ian climbed off Eric's lap and ran over to me.

"What's the problem, little man? Why are you so grumpy all of a sudden?" I knelt down in front of him.

"I not grumpy," he insisted, and wrapped his arms around my neck.

I picked him up and he snuggled against me. I sighed and sat down across from Eric's desk with Ian in my lap.

"How's your day been so far?" I asked Eric.

"Busy, but good," he said. "What about yours?"

"Good. Ian, do you want to tell Daddy what we did today?" I asked and he just hugged me tighter. "We went to the park after lunchtime, and Ian went potty all by himself twice today."

Eric's eyes lit up with pride. "You did?" he asked Ian.

Ian nodded, but refused to look at Eric. He really hated it when Daddy punished him in any capacity.

Eric got up and came over to us. He knelt down and said, "I think we'll have to make sure you get some of that green ice cream you like then."

"Oooh green ice cream," I patted Ian's back. "How about we go have dinner with Daddy and then you can have some?"

"Okay," Ian said and sat up in my lap. He held his arms out to Eric, and it was obvious that all was forgiven.

"Come on, buddy," Eric said as he lifted him from my lap.

I stood and followed Eric and Ian into the dining room. We took an empty table near the kitchen, and one of the waitresses brought over a booster seat for Ian to sit on.

"Hey little man. How are you today?" A waitress named Debbie asked.

"I fine," he reached for the crayons she put down for him so he could draw on his place mat.

"How about you, Mrs. Northman?" Debbie asked me.

"I'm good, thanks. You?"

"Busy, busy, but that's always a good thing. Can I get you all something to drink?"

"I'll have water, and Ian can have milk," I said.

"I'll have water too, Debbie," Eric said.

Ian sat quietly and scribbled away on his paper placemat while I looked over the menu. Thankfully Ian had a pretty well rounded diet, and didn't stick to just convenience foods the way some kids did. Slowly the diner started to fill with dinnertime customers.

"Ian, what do you want for dinner?" I asked him since I usually let him pick for himself when he was at the diner.

"Noodles," he said without looking up from his drawing.

"Cheesy ones or red ones?" I asked him, knowing he would have an opinion on that too.

"Red ones," he said and then looked up at Eric. "Daddy is there green ones?"

"Not yet, buddy, but maybe Laff will invent some one day."

Ian easily accepted this and went back to his drawing. Debbie came back with our drinks and took our dinner order. As usual, I got breakfast for dinner. It was always the same when I came in, and all I had to do was tell Debbie I wanted 'the usual,' and Lafayette knew exactly what that meant. With all that straightened out, I was able to focus on having a conversation with Eric.

"Your Mom called today, by the way. She wants to come out for a week to visit," I informed him.

"How soon?"

"Like two weeks from now, if that's okay with you. I didn't give her an answer. I told her I needed to run it past you first to make sure you'd be able to actually see her while she's in town."

"Yeah, I think I will. I'll call her tonight when we get home."

"Personally I think she just wants to be here to find out if the Sequel has indoor or outdoor plumbing," I smirked as Debbie stopped by our table with two cups of chicken noodle soup.

"Probably," he snickered, and thanked Debbie.

"Has she said anything to you about that?" I asked as I crushed up some crackers and put a couple of the noodles from my cup onto a small plate for Ian.

"Not yet."

I handed Ian his fork so he could try his noodles, even though he would have preferred coloring at the moment.

"Give it time," I smiled and dipped my spoon into my soup.

"Oh she'll start in with a vengeance, I'm sure."

"And I'm willing to bet she's hoping for a girl too," I stirred my soup to cool it down a little.

"Probably. Someone she can buy a pony for," he said, and Ian perked up.

"Pony?"

"Good work, Eric," I muttered. He was on his own with this one.

"Eat your noodles," Eric said.

"Why is Nanny getting a pony?" Ian asked, blatantly ignoring Eric's request.

"She's not, buddy."

"Can we get one?" he asked with hope in his eyes.

"And where would we keep it?" Eric asked him.

"Mmm... in the woods," Ian said after a minute of thought.

"But ponies need lots of space to run around in."

"We have lots of grass," Ian shrugged.

"That's not quite enough room. The pony would get a lot bigger. And what about Fang and Sully?"

"Those are dogs," Ian looked at Eric like he should know better.

Although in Eric's defense, Fang was pretty much the size of a horse now that she was fully grown.

"Yes, but they'd probably not like sharing their yard with a pony that will become a horse someday."

"The pony could go in the back, and the dogs in the front," Ian suggested.

"And would you clean up the pony's poop every day?"

"Daddy that's icky. And no potty talk at the table," Ian corrected his father's manners, and I was impressed.

"You're right, I'm sorry," he apologized.

"So I can have a pony for my birthday?" Ian looked from Eric to me.

"I don't think so, buddy," Eric said, pleading to me with his eyes.

"Ian, how about we trace your hand and you can make a turkey?" I suggested and he readily agreed. There was no guarantee distracting him would work, but it was worth a shot.

Thankfully, our food arrived a short time later and after getting Ian's sleeves rolled up I let him dig into his spaghetti. For kids that meant bow tie pasta instead of regular spaghetti. That was something I had suggested since, even though Ian wasn't on solid foods full-time yet, I had already done my share of scrubbing baby food stains off his clothes.

"Honey, you're a great cook but I sometimes think I'd leave you for Lafayette in a heartbeat if he was into chicks," I said after swallowing the first bite of my pancakes.

"Good thing he's not then," Eric smiled.

"Mommy these noodles is spicy," Ian looked at me with an obviously displeased expression on his face.

What he meant was that noodles were hot in temperature.

"How about some cheese and then you can stir them?" I suggested and shook some of the parmesan onto his plate for him. "Okay, now stir."

He stirred the noodles quickly and then tested one. "That's better," he nodded and dug in.

"They good?" Eric asked him.

Ian nodded and already there was a beard of tomato sauce forming around his mouth.

"You're cute, kiddo," Eric laughed and ruffled his hair.

"I know," Ian said absently and kept on eating.

"Modest, too," I smirked.

"He clearly gets that from you."

I scoffed and said, "I don't think so, mister. He got the stubborn from me."

"In addition to your stubbornness, he got your modesty."

"I'll show you modesty," I grumbled, but then winked at him so he'd know I wasn't really mad.

"Love you," he smiled.

"I love you too," I smiled back.

"No kissing," Ian stared right at me.

"Sookie?" Eric raised an eyebrow at me. "Should we kiss in front of him?"

"No!" Ian said forcefully and I laughed.

"Why can't I kiss Daddy?" I asked.

"Because I said," Ian looked at Eric, giving him the same squinty eyes he'd given me.

Eric smirked at him and started to lean across the table towards me.

"Stop it!" Ian lost the battle with his face to not smile.

"But I really, really want to kiss her," Eric said, and got even closer.

I leaned in the rest of the way and kissed him, and Ian groaned for all of two seconds before started giggling. He was such a weirdo sometimes.

"Don't worry, Snitch. Someday you'll want to kiss girls too," I told him when I sat back in my chair.

"No I not!" he said.

"Oh yes you will," Eric teased him.

Ian sent more squinty eyes our way but when back to his noodles. He was quiet for the rest of our meal, mostly, until he started asking about when he'd get to have his green ice cream that Eric had promised him earlier. While the two of them had dessert, I went back to the kitchen to talk to Lafayette. Unfortunately it was the height of the dinner rush so there wasn't much time to chat. We made plans to meet at Lorena's cafe for coffee the day after next instead.

I was heading back to the table when I felt a slight cramp in my stomach, but said nothing about it as I was sitting down.

"How's your ice cream?" I asked the men in my life.

"Deeleecious," Ian said with a smile, a big, green smile.

"You're adorable, kid," I leaned over and kissed his head.

"What about me?" Eric asked.

"I don't know, Mr. Modesty," I stuck my tongue out at him when Ian wasn't looking.

"Watch it, mommy," he pointed at me.

"Eat your ice cream," I said in the same tone Eric had used earlier when he told Ian to eat his noodles.

**oOoOoOo**

Eric groaned as my head bobbed up and down, my tongue swirling over the head of his cock. His hands were in my hair, but only because that seemed to be the default place for them to go whenever I went down on him. I knew he was close to finishing, but when he pulled my head up I knew he didn't want to finish there. Instead pulled my mouth to his and kissed me deeply. One of his hands moved down my body and checked to see if I was ready for him.

I was.

"Come here, sweetheart," he said in that sultry, mischievous voice I didn't get to hear nearly enough of.

I straddled his lap and slowly lowered myself onto him. I moaned quietly as he entered me, and braced my hands on his shoulders. His hands covered my breasts, which had grown again with the new baby growing inside me. I stilled for a moment when he was buried in me, and then slowly started to rock my hips against his.

Our lips met again and our tongues battled as I started to move up and down on top of him, occasionally rolling my hips with my down strokes. We took our time, enjoying sex in our bed instead of in the shower, or taking it wherever we could while Ian was sleeping. The headboard started to smack against the wall a little as my pace picked up, and Eric shifted us so I was on my back at the center of the bed, and turned so that his thrusts would move the mattress sideways instead of against the headboard.

"Mmm… so close," I mumbled a short time later, and I moved my hand down to touch myself.

"Fuck, sweetheart, you're so sexy when you do that," he growled and nibbled along my collarbone.

He started to thrust a little harder, and when he pushed my leg up so he could get deeper inside me he hit that spot that always made me scream. His mouth quickly covered mine, swallowing my moans as much as he could while I rode out my orgasm. A few strokes later he released inside me, and carefully sank his weight onto his elbows so as not to crush the Sequel.

"I will never, ever get tired of that," he panted.

"Me either," I kissed the side of his face.

He rolled off of me, and went to the bathroom for the necessary cleaning up part, and like always, he took care of me as well. I had too much trouble using my legs after fun times with Eric.

"We done good," he laughed once he was settled back in bed next to me.

I laughed along with him and said, "I don't think we've ever had bad sex."

"I can't really think of a single time that was bad," he said.

I yawned and burrowed underneath our fluffy comforter. "It's too bad Ian is awake before us. I kind of miss morning sex. Remember what Saturdays used to be like?"

"Waking up to a blowjob," he sighed. "Then I'd get to fuck you all day."

"The good old days," I snuggled into him.

"One day, in something like twenty years, we can have that again."

"Not if we have all eight of those babies you were talking about," I snickered, and closed my eyes when he started playing with my hair.

"I think I'll settle for two or three," he said.

"Good call."

"All of them will be cute though," he said. "And you can't blame me if the next one ends up being twins."

"Twins I think I could handle. Triplets are another story," I shivered at the thought of it.

"We could do it."

"Of course we _could_, but do we _want_ to?"

"Not really," he chuckled. "I would if they were mine. I mean, we'd deal with it. But if, say, Pam and Jason get knocked up with triplets, then both of them die or something and leave them to us? Hell no I wouldn't want to."

"Oh God. Now I'm imagining Pam with identical triplet daughters," I burst out laughing. "They have her designer taste and Jason's intelligence."

Eric actually shuddered next to me. "That sounds like a nightmare."

"Better them than us," I turned a little and smiled up at him. "I think one more after this might be my limit."

"I'm happy to stop whenever you are," he said. "You're the one who had to put all the work into it."

"I just don't want Ian to be an only child. Jason was a pain in my ass a lot of the time, but as we've gotten older I can appreciate him more."

"I feel like I had a childhood as an only child, and another one with a sibling. They were both interesting, but I do like having a sister most of the time."

"My mom always said that if you were going to have one, you might as well have two. I always thought that was a little ridiculous until Ian was born."

"Your mom is a wise woman."

"She has her moments. I'll reserve my opinion as to whether or not I agree until the Sequel is on the loose."

"The Sequel will be awesome, and then we'll work on the Trilogy."

I laughed quietly and snuggled into him some more. "What comes after a trilogy?" I asked out of sheer curiosity since I had no idea.

"Um, a... you know, I don't know. I think then it just becomes a series."

"Hmmm... well, if we _do_go beyond three kids we'll have to come up with a new nickname while it's in utero," I sighed and closed my eyes.

I didn't like referring to the baby as an 'it.' My experience of being pregnant with Ian told me that babies had their own little personalities from the time they were conceived. Before he was even born I knew that Ian would be the playful sort, and I was curious to see what the new baby was going to be like. I knew Eric was too.

"We could just start calling them all Jr."

"We could, but that's kind of boring."

"If we ever get pregnant with twins, can we name them Fred and George?" he asked.

"Why in the world would we call them that?" I asked with a laugh.

"Those are the names of the Weasley twins in Harry Potter."

He was serious.

"Can't we just call them the Weasleys?" I suggested.

"We could do that," he grinned.

"Okay, deal. If we have twins, we'll call them the Weasleys," I giggled.

"Yes!"

"You're so cute. You realize the possibility of twins is a long shot, right?" I didn't want him to get _too_excited.

"Yeah, we only have one more shot at it too."

"You never know... we could have a second baby hiding in here," I patted my belly. "It's still early."

"Oh my God, what if there _are_ two? You are getting bigger faster this time," he said.

"I suppose we'll find out at my next appointment."

"I can't wait."

"Me either," I yawned and tilted my face up to kiss his neck since it was all I could reach without shifting around. "Goodnight, Eric."

"Goodnight, sweetheart."

**oOoOoOo**

"Ian what do you say to Lorena for the cookies she brought us?" I asked while he sat at the table, diving face first into one of the cookies.

"Thanks Rena," he grinned and reached for his milk.

"You're welcome, sweetie," she smiled at him. "I can't get over how cute he is, Sookie."

"It's a good thing, too. They're harder to strangle when they're adorable," I joked.

"Isn't that the truth," she laughed, but I got the feeling that she didn't really find it funny.

"So did you try that recipe Lafayette sent for you?" I asked and went to the fridge to pour us a couple of glasses of iced tea.

"I did," she said. "It was so delicious. Bill and Jessica devoured it."

"Oh good! I'm glad to hear that," I handed her a glass of tea. "How are things at the cafe?"

"As good as ever. I'm trying my hand at catering next week. Cupcakes for a birthday party, but they want the cupcakes as a meal. It'll be interesting. How about the diner? Things are well?"

"Cupcakes as a meal? Sounds like Ian's dream dinner," I laughed and added, "The diner is doing great. The weekend brunch thing Eric decided to try was a brilliant idea, so we turn an insane number of tables on Sunday after church lets out. You guys should come by some Sunday. If you let me know ahead of time I'll make sure to reserve a table for you."

"Oh I don't know, Bill doesn't really like to go out to eat much."

"Oh," I said slowly and paused for a moment, wondering if Lorena only did the things Bill liked doing. I kept my opinion to myself, though. "Well, if you ever change your mind..."

"If Bill has work to do, I'm sure Jessica would enjoy coming along with me. I do love the diner's food."

I smiled and asked, "How long have you and Bill been married now?"

"Almost twenty-three years now," she said with a smile.

"Wow. That's a... wow. It's rare these days. I hope Eric and I go the distance," I said since I didn't want to mention divorce in front of Ian and give him any ideas, although I was pretty sure he didn't know what a divorce was at his age.

"I think you two will definitely go the distance," she said. "You'll be that old couple covered in grandkids."

"I hope so. Eric is going to be a ridiculously good looking old man," I sighed at the thought of it. "You know he suggested we have _fifteen_ kids? I love his mother, but she obviously dropped him on his head a time or two."

"Oh no. Fifteen? You're not a machine."

"He came down to eight," I snorted.

"That's not much better," she said. "Maybe if he carried half."

"Oh hell no. No, no I do not need him complaining through nine months of pregnancy. You know how men are if they so much as get a cold," I shook my head. Eric wasn't really _that_bad, but I had a feeling it might be different if he could carry a child.

"They do turn into big babies," he laughed.

"Daddy's not a baby," Ian immediately took up for his father.

"Of course not, Snitch," I reached over and ruffled his hair.

"The last time Bill was sick I could hardly stand to be around him," Lorena commented.

"That bad, huh?" I gave her a look of sympathy.

"Yeah, he gets a little fussy."

I wanted to ask just how fussy he got, but Lorena had a tendency to clam up if I asked too many questions. As long as no one tried to dig too deep she was the friendliest person you ever met.

"The joys of marriage, huh?" I smirked, and put one more cookie in front of Ian. Three was more than enough.

"Indeed," she smiled back.

"What's it like with him working from home? Does that ever interfere with your day to day routine?"

"Not really. He's been working from home so long that it's just part of our day to day."

"It doesn't get bothersome for either of you? I mean, I love Eric and all but I'm glad he goes into the diner or we would drive each other insane after a while."

"It's kind of the opposite I think. He's like the stay at home dad, and I go out and work. I come home for lunch, and I'm back to do dinner."

"True. You _do_ put in a lot of hours at the cafe. It's great that he helps you around the house then," I smiled at her.

"Oh no, he doesn't do housework," she said. "That's my area."

"Oh... does he do meals then?"

"He couldn't cook if his life depended on it."

I just smiled and nodded since it wasn't really my place to comment on what worked for them. They were married for twenty-three years, so obviously something had to be working, right? It wasn't the way _I_ would want to live my life, but that didn't mean Lorena wasn't happy.

"Then he's lucky he's got a wife who likes cooking."

_It's also convenient for him that he doesn't like going out to eat since he's not the one stuck doing all the cooking._

"I do enjoy it. It's relaxing, and something I can control. It's like therapy," she smiled.

"I used to feel that way about reading. Amazing what a house to maintain and a three-year-old will do to totally ruin any free time you have, huh?"

"It's sadly true. It always makes me laugh when people say stay at home moms have it easy."

"Maybe if I had a team of servants and nannies," I smirked.

"No kidding," she laughed. "I tried hiring a maid once to help with the cleaning, but Bill put the kibosh on that quickly. He didn't like someone milling about while he was working."

"We had a cleaning lady that came in once a week for a while when Ian was still a baby, but I put a stop to that when he was about four months old. Once we got on a schedule it was easier for me. Between a new baby, new house and new business I don't think I got much sleep," I recalled with a faint smile. Those had been some crazy days for Eric and me. I think we were on auto-pilot for the first six months of Ian's life.

"Schedules are a necessity in my house," she said. "It's just easier to be organized."

"I agree," I glanced at the clock. "Guess what, little man? It's nap time."

Ian looked at me like I'd lost my mind, but got up without argument. "I need to go potty first."

"Okay. Say goodbye to Lorena," I pushed back from the table. "I'll be back in just a second if you want to wait, but if you've got other things to do I understand."

"I do need to get back home. I have some things to get done," she said. "Bye-bye Ian!"

"Bye Rena," Ian went over and gave her a hug.

"Always with the good hugs," she said as she gave just as good as she got.

"Go on up, Snitch, I'll be right behind you," I promised him and Ian headed for the stairs. "Thanks for stopping by, Lorena. I'll be sure to put some of those cookies off to the side for Eric."

"Let me know how he likes them?" she asked.

"Absolutely," I opened the screen door for her.

"Great," she smiled. "See you again soon."

"Yes you will," I let the door close after she stepped outside and I made sure to put the latch in place.

By the time I got upstairs Ian had yanked off his Pull-Up and was jumping pantsless on his bed. I stood in the doorway of his bedroom, completely amused by what I was seeing.

"What are you doing, little boy?" I folded my arms as he bounced and giggled.

His father would be so proud.

"I jumpin'!" Ian said with pride in his eyes even though he knew jumping on the bed was a no-no.

"No more jumping on the bed, you little monkey. Come on, let's get you a new Pull-Up, and then it's sleep time," I went across the hall to the bathroom.

Ten minutes later he had gone potty, put on his new Pull-Up and was climbing onto his bed. I figured he would probably lay there for a little while, trying to think up excuses why he should get to skip his nap, but if he did he would be a beast until bedtime. Moreover, I needed a nap myself.

"Sweet dreams, buddy," I bent down and gave him butterfly kisses that made him giggle.

"Night, night Mommy," he rolled onto his side and hugged his lamb.

I was just coming down the stairs when I heard Eric's car in the driveway. He was home earlier than I expected, but I didn't mind one bit. I'd just settled on the couch when the front door opened, and I hoped he didn't call out to me because if Ian heard Eric was home there was no way he'd stay in bed.

My husband was a smart man, because he searched me out instead, and when he found me on the couch he pounced.

"Hello darling," he said, and kissed me.

"Hi. Having a good day, are you?" I asked when he pulled back.

"We had a food critic in today," he said.

"You did? What'd they say? How'd it go?" I asked quickly, and with a lot of excitement.

"We won't know officially until the write-up is published, but we practically had to roll the guy out of there, and he was begging Laff for recipes before he left."

"Baby, that's wonderful!" It was his turn to get pounced. "I'm so happy for you!"

"I think we should celebrate by taking Lafayette out for dinner."

"I agree. Having him around has been... I don't even know what the word is, but I'm glad he moved with us."

"Me too," he smiled. "And when the write-up is published, he's getting a raise."

"Assuming it's a good one," I said in a hopeful tone.

"You didn't hear the noises this guy was making and the faces... I swear he was sexually aroused by the food."

"Wow."

"I think this calls for ice cream sundaes tonight," he grinned. He knew just what it meant when we pulled the whipped cream out.

"Sounds yummy. There are cookies on the counter that Lorena brought by earlier."

"Ooh awesome," he said. "Where's the kid?"

"Probably plotting ways to get more of those cookies in his face, but he _should_ be napping. I sent him upstairs while I let Lorena out, and I found him up there naked from the waist down jumping on his bed," I shook my head.

"That's my boy," he grinned. "How about I go check on him, and if he's asleep, you and I have some fun?"

"What kind of fun are you suggesting?" I smiled, knowing pretty damn well what he was thinking.

"The kind where we do it really quickly with our clothes mostly on in case the boy comes in."

"And where would you like to have this fun?"

"I'm thinking the kitchen," he said hopefully. "I haven't enjoyed you in there in much too long."

"The kitchen could be fun," I climbed off of him. "Go check the boy and then come find me."

"As you wish," he smiled, and shot off towards the stairs.

I knew the second he pounced on me why he had come home early. That was not only the benefit of being his own boss, but of living about ten minutes from work. I went to the kitchen and put the cookies in a Ziploc bag so they wouldn't go stale. I was rinsing out Ian's cup when I was attacked from behind by a horny giant.

"He's asleep," Eric said into my neck before he started kissing it.

I tilted my head a little to give him better access and said, "I'm surprised since he was bouncing around so much."

"He crashes hard sometimes."

"Yes he does," I turned off the water and reached for a towel to dry my hands.

"I want to be inside you so badly," he said, and ground his hips into my ass.

"So what are you waiting for?" I wiggled back against him.

"Quickie?" he asked as his hands dipped into the waistband of my pants.

"Isn't that what you wanted?" I gasped when his hand worked its way into my panties.

"But is it what you want?"

"When do I ever turn down a surprise orgasm?" I smiled over my shoulder at him.

"Then allow me," he said, and as fast as I could blink, my pants were suddenly down around my knees.

Eric turned me around and set me on the counter, and then pulled me into one of those kisses that made my insides all gooey. If I had still been wearing them my panties would have been soaked. His hands cupped my breasts but stayed over my shirt, and his mouth moved to my neck. I reached to unbutton his jeans and one of his hands slid down between my thighs.

He had clearly been thinking about catching me just the way he had me, since he was already hard as a rock when I released his cock from his jeans. His fingers moved expertly, teasing my clit and dipping into my entrance to tease me until I was wet and ready for him. As soon as I was he pulled me to the edge of the counter, kissed me hard and thrust into me.

His mouth on mine muffled my moans, and my hands went to that gorgeous ass of his to pull him deeper inside me. My head smacked against the cabinet behind me when the kiss broke and my legs wrapped around him when my hands moved up his back. There were no words, just the sound of skin slapping against skin, and our collective heavy breathing as we got closer and closer to our climaxes.

Eric's thumb found my clit and rubbed quickly, signaling that he was close to his release, and it was the pinching of one of my overly sensitive nipples that threw me over the edge. My core clamped down on him, and a few seconds later Eric came undone and released with a shudder deep inside me. I whimpered and pulled his face to mine.

"We need to do that more often," he panted.

"Mmhmm..." I agreed with a lazy smile.

"Mommy!" Ian called from upstairs.

"Jesus, that was the shortest nap ever," Eric said as he scrambled to get presentable again.

"He probably wasn't really sleeping," I said as I slipped down off the counter. "He's not coming downstairs yet. He's only been up there for half an hour."

"Want me to go get him to sleep again?"

"No, I'll go. If he sees you he'll think it's playtime," I stretched up and kissed him quickly, but with a little more oomph than I probably should have if I didn't want to get pulled into round two when I came back down.

"Want me to start making you some lunch?" he asked with a sloppy grin.

"Sure," I smiled and headed upstairs to go check on Ian. "What's the matter, buddy?"

"I not tired," he said, even as he yawned.

"I think you are. Come on," I took his hand and led him back to bed.

"I want to come down by you," he pouted.

"Nope, you take naps in your bed," I watched him climb back in.

"Pleeeease?" he gave me The Lip.

"Nope, sorry," I leaned down to kiss his head. "I can put your music on if you want?"

He nodded and I went over to the little CD player up on the shelf in his room. Quiet lullabies played by harps started and Ian curled on his side again. I went back to his bed and kissed his cheek.

"Sweet dreams, baby," I whispered and then closed his door behind me on my way out. Sometimes he just needed to be tucked in twice.

I went back downstairs and hugged Eric from behind while he worked on lunch.

"He good?"

"For now," I sighed and leaned into him a little more.

"I sense that there's something wrong," he said, and turned around to hug me.

"No, nothing's wrong," I hugged him back, burrowing into him a little. "I just like being close to you."

"Are you nesting?"

"Not yet. Give it another couple of months."

"I love you," he smiled.

"I love you too. What's for lunch?" I asked but didn't let go of him.

"The only thing I felt like making," he chuckled. "Sandwiches and chips."

"Works for me. Are you going back to the diner after you eat?" I went to the fridge to get us drinks.

"Yeah, I have a few things to take care of. I'll be back home before dinner."

"Okay," I sat at the table and waited for my sandwich.

"You feel like extra cheese today?" he asked.

"I would love you forever," I grinned at him.

"Extra cheese it is," he said, then topped off the sandwich and brought it over to me with a kiss on the cheek. "But you'd love me forever anyway."

"Of course, but now I'll love you a little extra," I said and chomped on my sandwich.

"What does the little extra get me?" he asked as he went back to the counter to make his sandwich.

"Mmm... what do you want?" I asked after finishing what was in my mouth.

"I think it should get me more... something," he said. "I'm not sure yet. We sex a lot, so I'd be selfish to ask for more of that."

"Besides, the second trimester is about to start. You'll have a hard time keeping up with me," I winked at him.

"The hell if I will," he scoffed.

"I seem to recall wearing you out several times when I was pregnant with Ian, and you were younger then, champ."

"I'm not that old."

"I didn't say you are. I simply said you were younger then."

"So were you."

"Pregnancy hormones know no age, dearest," I reminded him.

"I'll prove you wrong."

"I'm sure you will," I smiled and took another bite of my sandwich.

He came over and sat down beside me with his sandwich. "Oh, I guarantee it."

"That's going to mean locking our bedroom door more often. Are you prepared for that?"

He narrowed his eyes at me, and took a bit of his sandwich before answering.

"Fine, but we have to be quiet. I don't want him thinking I'm hurting you."

"I can't make a promise like that and you know it."

"Then we can't lock the door."

"Then it looks like the hitachi will be getting more action than you," I shrugged.

"The fuck if it will," he almost hissed at me but then calmed down. "The only way it's getting any action is if I'm there too, and you know just as well as I do that masturbation doesn't work on those hormones. You need a good hot dicking."

I literally choked on my drink. Tea _everywhere_.

"Are you trying to kill me?" I asked once I stopped coughing and sputtering.

"No," he smirked, and took another bite of his food.

I got up to get a dish towel to wipe up the mess while he kept eating. Eric was better about integrating toys into our sex life, but he still got uppity when it came to the suggesting of me using them alone.

"I swear, I don't know where you come up with the stuff you say sometimes," I said once I was sitting at the table with him again.

"I just have a man brain."

"I guess," I sighed and took another bite of my sandwich.

"We'll see what happens when the hormones attack."

"I'm just telling you now, either the door gets locked or I'm going to take care of it myself."

He sighed, and said, "Oh fine, but if he becomes traumatized because he can't get to us, it's your fault."

"I swear, sometimes I think _I'm _the one with the man brain around here," I shook my head and reached for a tortilla chip.

"I thought women liked sensitive men."

"We do, but you're insane if you think a locked door is more detrimental to a child's psyche than seeing its father balls deep in its mother," I said with a straight face and it was Eric's turn to sputter.

"Ugh, fine, you're right," he said. "But so is hearing noises that sound a lot like your father is hurting your mother."

"He sleeps like the dead, Eric. You're paranoid for nothing."

"What if he has a nightmare?"

"Then he'll bang on the door and we'll hear it. He'll be fine, Eric."

"What if we can't hear it over the moaning noises you make?"

"Are you trying to talk me out of sex, because that's what it sounds like," I narrowed my eyes at him.

"No, I'm not trying to talk you out of sex. I'm just concerned about the well being of our child."

"I think you're making a big deal over nothing," I said in frustration. I really failed to see what he was freaking the fuck out over. It was a locked door, not a mote.

"Oh shit, you're getting mad."

"Because you're being ridiculous! We've had this conversation _how _many times? Not once has Ian ever woken up because we were having sex too loud. Sometimes I think you want him to catch us," I got up and took my plate over to the sink.

Eric got up and followed me, and wrapped his arms around me from behind. "I'm sorry," he whispered in my ear. "I'm not sure why it makes me nervous, but it does. We'll try it out, and when nothing bad happens I'll be fine."

"You better, or I'm cutting you off and replacing you with the hitachi."

He snickered and said, "We already discussed this. Nothing can replace me."

"Well then don't give me a chance to find out if that's true or not."

"Deep, deep down, in your loins, you know it's true."

It's a good thing my back was to him because my eye roll at his choice of words was nothing short of epic. Seriously, I had no idea where he came up with that stuff.

"I'm making meatloaf for dinner," I decided it was time to change the subject since we were starting to talk in circles.

"Then it's a good thing we had a light lunch. Will you make me my own loaf again?"

"Yes, I will," I smiled over my shoulder at him.

"Thank you," he said, and gave me a peck on the lips.

Shortly after that Eric headed back to the diner and I went to the living room to lie down for a little while. I got maybe a half an hour's worth of nap in before Ian was calling for me from upstairs. I sighed heavily, and went upstairs to retrieve my little monster.


	5. Mean Streak

**Sorry I've been such a slacker with the posting on this story as of late. It just takes forfuckever to proofread these bitches before posting. I'm lazy like that sometimes. I'll try to get more on the ball with it.**

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><p><span>Chapter 5: Mean Streak<span>

Two weeks later I was sitting on the couch, trying desperately to keep my eyes open while Eric tucked Ian into bed. Little man had gotten up earlier than usual, and since Eric had to go in to do inventory there was no chance of my sleeping in later. This time around pregnancy was really kicking my ass, and while I had avoided morning sickness I couldn't ever seem to get enough sleep. I was convinced the new baby was going to come out chubby and lazy.

"Little booger is passed the heck out," Eric said when he got back to the living room and sat down next to me.

"Good," I yawned and curled up next to him, which was easier to do when my belly wasn't in the way but it was going to get worse before it got better.

"Tired?" he asked.

"Mmhmmm..." my eyes started to close.

"Want to just go on up to bed, or sit here for a while?"

"I don't want to move," I said quietly. "You can put that movie on if you want."

"You're just going to sleep through it."

"No I won't," I forced my eyes open. "See? Wide awake."

He chuckled and got up. "You're lucky you're cute."

"It _is_ why you keep having babies with me," I grinned a goofy grin at him, and then gasped when I felt movement in my belly.

I'd been feeling the flutters for weeks, but it was the first official kick from the Sequel, and it was a good one.

"What? What happened?" Eric asked frantically, dropping to his knees in front of me.

"The Sequel kicked!" I grinned and Eric actually pushed my hand out of the way so he could feel me up.

"Where? Make her do it again!"

"You know it doesn't work like that," I laughed. "And I'm sure _he_ will do it when _he's_ good and ready."

"It's a girl, and what were you doing when she kicked?" he asked, feeling all over my bump.

"Grinning like a jack ass. It's not like I got up and did jumping jacks that you didn't see," I snickered.

"I hate missing things," he frowned.

"I'm sure _he'll _do it again," I leaned over and kissed him.

"_She _will, for her daddy."

"You hear that in there, buddy? Daddy thinks you're a girl. We know better though, don't we?" I patted my bump and was rewarded with another kick that Eric didn't get to feel.

Eric saw my eyes widen, and knocked my hand out of the way again. "Okay, okay you're a boy," he said to no avail.

"It'll happen again," I promised when that sad puppy look took over his face. He was going to keep that pout until he felt the kiddo kick his hand.

"But I want to feel it too."

"I know you do, but I can't make him kick," I put his hand back on my belly. "There. Now if he kicks again you'll be able to feel it, too."

"Tell him to kick me," Eric said.

"Do you really think that's going to work?" I lifted an eyebrow at him.

"It might!"

"Fine," I sighed and looked down at my stomach with a stern expression on my face. "Listen up, you. If you don't kick your Daddy's hand he's going to spend the rest of the night pouting, and I know you don't know what that looks like, but trust me, it's no fun. Don't make me cut off your cheese supply."

"It's not working," he pouted.

I stuck out my bottom lip and snuggled against him a little more. "Just give it time. Remember how it was with Ian at first? He didn't kick all the time right away either. Give it a few more days."

"But she... _he_ just kicked twice for you."

"He didn't do it for me," I groaned.

Why did he have to take it so damn personally? Like I had any control over it.

"I wouldn't really want most of the stuff you go through during a pregnancy, but I do get a little jealous of the bond you form with our babies."

"Believe me, Eric, if I could make the baby kick for you, I would, but it's not up to me."

"Yeah, I know," he said with a sigh, and removed his hands from my stomach.

"Are you going to be all emo for the rest of the night?"

"No, I'll be fine. There's lots of time for kicking."

"Good. Are we going to watch a movie or are we going up to bed?" I asked as I shifted on the couch.

"If you're awake enough now, I vote movie," he said.

"I can't promise I'll stay awake for the whole thing, but I'll give it my best shot," I promised.

"That's all I ask," he said, and got up again to put in a movie.

"What are we watching?" I asked while he fiddled with the DVD player.

"_Heathers_."

"I still can't believe you like this movie," I shook my head, but smiled the whole time.

"Sookie, they say fuck me gently with a chainsaw in this movie. How could I not like it?"

I snorted at that. It was certainly an interesting way to look at it.

"My favorite part is still JD explaining why all of the props he brought to stage the jock 'suicide.' Oh! Oh and the father at the funeral. I love him. I love my dead gay son!" I fell to the side, lost in a fit of giggles.

"You're adorable," Eric chuckled and plopped back down on the couch.

"If you wanna fuck with the eagles you have to learn to fly," I snorted. God, Heather Chandler was such a twat.

"Calm down, sweetheart."

"My teen angst has a body count," I giggled.

"What have I done?"

"Put in a movie that I have memorized certain parts of. You know this. But if I start getting annoying feel free to make out with me instead," I told him.

"I may take you up on that," he grinned, and hit play.

"Just promise me you will never open a bag of Corn Nuts in my presence. The smell of them makes me want to narf like nobody's business."

"I promise."

I was humming along with the opening song of the movie and Eric was trying not to cringe beside me when there was a frantic banging on the kitchen door. He paused the movie and we looked at each other.

"What the hell? Who is that?" I asked curiously, but didn't expect him to answer the question.

"I'll go find out," he said. "Stay here."

I stayed right where I was on the couch, knowing full well that if I followed him I'd get the evil eye for it. My husband could be moodier than me sometimes.

A few seconds later my question of who was at the back door was answered by a sobbing, familiar voice. It was Jessica.

"Can I come in, please Mr. Northman?" she managed to choke out between sobs.

"What happened, Jessica?" Eric asked, and I heard him pull the door open wider for her.

I was up off the couch and headed for the kitchen as Jessica started talking. When Jessica saw me, she came right to me and nearly collapsed into my arms as she began to cry harder.

"Oh, honey, what's wrong?" I stroked her hair gently and rubbed her back, hoping to calm her down a little. I looked at Eric rather helplessly.

"Jessica, is someone hurt?" Eric asked her, gently, and she shook her head.

"Well," she hiccuped. "I don't know. Mom and Dad where fighting, and it was getting worse than normal, and it turned violent. I'm worried about my mom. Can I call the police?"

"Hold on a second, Jess," I handed her a napkin so she could wipe her face. "Take a few deep breaths and tell us what happened before we call the police."

I got her situated at the kitchen table and went to the fridge to get her some water, hoping she would calm down a little.

"Thank you, Sookie," she said, and I knew she was rattled, because it was the first time she'd ever called me by my first name. She sipped the water, and wiped her eyes and nose, and when her breathing returned to being somewhat normal, she started talking. "I know no one would guess it, but my parents fight all the time. Dad got mad at Mom for something really stupid, and for some reason tonight he got really, really mad, and started throwing things. He's never done that before. He hit her. I heard it, and I heard her cry out. I snuck out so I could call the police."

I looked at Eric, unsure of what to do. I didn't have a reason to think Jessica was lying, but I wanted to be sure before we called the cops.

"You're sure your dad hit your mom?" I put my hand on her shoulder.

"Yes," she insisted, and started crying again.

"It's okay, sweetie, we'll figure this out," I knelt down next to her and gave her another hug. While she cried on my shoulder I looked over at Eric, who was slightly red faced. If there was one thing that really got under his skin, it was domestic violence. I supposed that was because he would _never_ raise a hand to me and would probably kill anyone who did.

"Sookie, can I talk to you in the other room, please?" Eric asked.

"Sure," I said and pulled back from Jessica a little. "Are you going to be okay here for a minute?" I brushed her hair back from her face.

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Okay. If you want anything just help yourself. We'll be right back," I promised her and then followed Eric out of the kitchen.

"I'm going to go over there and see what's going on, and then we'll call the cops," he told me.

"I think that's a good idea. I know we've had our suspicions about Bill being a secret nutter, but I... I doubt Lorena will tell the police that Bill hit her, to tell the truth," I sighed and hung my head. "I feel horrible for Jessica."

"Me too. I could just kill that asshole though. While I'm gone, will you find out if he's ever hurt her?"

I nodded and wrapped my arms around him tightly. "If they're still at it when you get over there, just come back home and we'll call the police. Jessica shouldn't have to get in the middle of that."

"I will," he said. "Be right back."

"Be careful," I kissed him quickly and followed him into the kitchen.

"Jessica, you stay here with Sookie, okay? I'm going to go over to your house to see what's going on," Eric told her.

"No, my dad will be so angry I told you!"

"Jess, it's going to be okay. Eric's not going to go inside, he's just going to try to listen to see if they're still fighting. We don't feel good about letting you go back there if they're still fighting," I explained calmly. "How about some hot cocoa?"

"Just don't go in, please," she begged him.

"I won't, I promise," he offered her a reassuring smile, then went out the door.

I got out a sauce pan, some milk and the cocoa mix that was in the pantry. I started measuring things out, and Jessica came to stand next to me at the stove.

"Do you want to tell me what they were fighting about?" I asked as I started to whisk everything together.

"I don't know. It always starts out quiet, and then turns into a screaming match. She says he doesn't appreciate her, and he... well he calls her a lot of mean names," she said, and the sniffles started again. "My dad isn't a very nice person."

"How often do they fight?"

"Usually a couple times a week."

"Is it always that bad?"

"This is the worst it's ever gotten."

"Awww sweetie," I put my arm around her when she laid her head on my shoulder. "Listen, Jessica I know this is... I know this can't be easy for you, but... your dad, I mean he never... he's never hit you, has he?"

"No," she shook her head. "He doesn't like me much, but he's never argued with me, or hit me."

"I'm sure he loves you, Jess," I said, even as she shook her head to deny it.

"He tolerates me."

I really hoped that wasn't true. No child should ever be made to feel like they aren't wanted. Jessica was such a sweet girl that I found it hard to believe her own father would treat her like he was just tolerating her. She bent over backwards to make him proud of her, and I worried all the time that it was for nothing. I was always telling myself that I was overreacting, but maybe I wasn't.

"Maybe he just doesn't know how to show you he loves you. I went through an awkward phase with my dad when I was your age," I told her, hoping it would make her feel better.

"No, he just doesn't care. I think he only let my mom adopt me because she wanted kids, and he didn't."

I didn't know what to say to that. It was becoming pretty clear to me that Bill Compton wasn't the person he presented himself to be. Jessica obviously knew her father better than I did, and I didn't want to force something on her and make her feel worse than she already did.

"They don't put you in the middle of things, do they?" I asked.

"No," she shook her head. "He pretends I don't exist except when he decides to act like he cares, and Mom acts like nothing's wrong."

"I'm sorry, honey," I wrapped an arm around her. "You know you're always welcome here if you need somewhere to go, right?"

Just then the Sequel decided to kick again, and I quickly moved her hand to my belly so she could feel it. Eric was going to be pissed that Jessica felt the baby move before he did, but she needed something to cheer her up.

"Oh my God," she said, her eyes widening. "Does that hurt you?"

"Only when the baby gets an organ," I smiled. "Pretty cool, huh? Just started tonight. Eric was coming off of an epic pout because he didn't get to feel it before you got here."

"Oh I didn't mean to interrupt something so important," she apologized.

"Don't worry about it, sweetie. You didn't interrupt anything. We were just going to watch a movie, and we've seen it dozens of times before," I patted her shoulder. "Do you want whipped cream for your cocoa?"

She nodded, and then she grabbed my hand. "It means a lot that you and Eric are here, Sookie."

"I'm glad you feel comfortable coming to us. I mean it, Jess, you're always welcome," I squeezed her hand.

"I know. Ian's lucky to have parents like you two," she smiled.

"Yeah he is. Although I might really drop him off at the zoo one day," I snickered and went to the fridge to get the whipped cream.

"He'd be right at home with the monkeys," she giggled.

"He could probably teach them a thing or two," I laughed along with her and we had just started doctoring up our cocoa the way we wanted it when Eric came back.

"Hey," he said when he came in the room.

Jessica was immediately on edge again. "Is my mom okay?"

"I didn't see anything," he said, "but they were still arguing. It didn't sound any worse than one of mine and Sookie's bad fights."

"If you still want to call the police we will, Jessica, but if you want to just hang out here for a while until things cool down that's okay too," I told her.

"I don't know what to do," she said, her eyes tearing up again. "If I call the police, it'll be my word against theirs, and my mom will be upset because she wouldn't want her image to be hurt."

I opened my mouth to speak when the phone rang. It was weird since hardly anyone ever called us on our house phone anymore. Eric grabbed the handset on the wall and answered the phone.

"Hello?" he answered. "Yes, she's here right now. Why don't you wait a half hour or so, and then come over? Of course. Bye."

"Who was that?" I asked, even though I figured it had to be one of Jessica's parents.

"Bill," he said, his voice tense.

"Is he mad?" Jessica asked.

"He wanted to know if we'd seen you, but he didn't sound angry."

"Think he'll wait the full half hour before coming to get her?" I asked and poured Eric a cup of cocoa.

"He better," he said. "It'll give Jessica time to decide what she wants to do."

We were quiet for a while after that, all of us thinking whatever we were thinking and drinking our cocoa. Finally the silence started to get to me so I broke it.

"So, Jessica, how's school going?" I asked since I couldn't think of anything else to say.

"It's fine," she said. "I'm good at it."

"That's good," I smiled at her and looked to Eric, hoping he would have something to add to the conversation.

"Sookie started feeling the baby kick today," he offered.

Jessica and I looked at each other and started laughing.

"What? What's funny?"

"I felt it already," Jessica said, and Eric's jaw dropped.

"She kicked for Jessica, but won't for her own dad?" he said, exasperated.

"It just happened! It's not like I told _him_ to do it," I sighed.

"_She _is clearly just a mama's girl," he pouted.

"You're being ridiculous, Eric."

"It really wasn't that big of a deal," Jessica spoke up. "Sookie felt it, and put my hand on her stomach real quick. The baby didn't do it for _me_."

"See?" I sipped more of my cocoa.

He sighed. "I'm sorry, Jessica. I'm just feeling a little left out."

"It's alright. The baby will be here before you know it, and you both will get firsts."

"Are you kidding? Eric's still bitter because I got Ian's first smile," I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Then I'll be getting Sookie Junior's first smile," he said.

"Ha!" I snorted and looked at Jessica. "We have a bet going. Eric thinks it's a girl and I say it's a boy. We'll find out soon what it is, but he's sure it's a girl."

"Do none of those old wive's tales hold any truth?" Jessica asked.

"I never really paid any attention to them so I'm not sure if I exhibit any of the signs," I admitted with a shrug.

"Mom says if you carry low it's a boy," she said.

"It's too soon to tell with this one, but with Ian I carried low," I recalled.

"Then it might be true," she smiled, glad to be able to contribute to the topic.

"I still want a daughter," Eric chimed in.

"Yes, Eric has determined that we will keep going until we have a daughter," I rolled my eyes.

Jessica frowned again, and said quietly, "At least she'd be wanted by her dad."

I reached over and put my hand on Jessica's shoulder. I didn't say anything because really, what was I going to say to make her feel better? Eric opened his mouth to say something, but a knock on the door stopped him. I got up to answer the door, hoping that if it was Bill he'd be less inclined to yell if he was looking at a pregnant lady who could very easily turn on the waterworks whenever she wanted to.

"Hi, Bill, come on in," I said as politely as possible and opened the screen door for him.

He walked in with his hands in his pockets, as per usual, and a tense expression on his face. "I'm sorry to bother you so late. Thank you for looking after Jessica, but we should be heading back home."

Bill had the warmth of an abominable snowman.

"Bill, can we talk in the other room for a minute?" Eric asked.

Bill glared at Jessica for a moment, and it was probably a good thing that her eyes were already trained on the table in front of her or she would have started crying.

"Certainly," Bill said and followed Eric out of the room.

"It'll be okay, Jessica," I whispered to her after Eric and Bill were gone.

"Will you watch my room tonight?" she asked me. "If anything's wrong, I'll turn the lamp in front of my window on. If it's okay, I'll leave it off. You could call the police if I turn it on."

My heart broke a little that we had to make an arrangement like that, but I nodded. "Of course."

"Thank you," she said, and wrapped her arms around me tightly.

"You're welcome. You've got my cell number, you know. Don't be afraid to use it," I patted her back.

"Dad took away my cell phone," she said. "I got an A- on a test."

"Seriously?" I lifted an eyebrow and she nodded.

I could think of a whole bunch of things I wanted to say, but it wasn't appropriate for me to say it to her. Jessica already knew her dad was weird. She didn't need me to drive that point home further.

"But I have your number written down. We have a house phone."

"Good. There's always the diner, too. If we're not here, that's usually where we are. Hopefully Eric will talk some sense into your dad and they'll remember that fighting in front of you isn't such a great idea. You really shouldn't have to hear all that stuff," I stroked her hair again.

"I'm not sure it'll do any good."

"Maybe not, but maybe something will sink in. You never know. Just try to be positive," I got up to rinse our mugs out.

"I'll try," she promised.

Bill came stomping into the room and said, "Jessica, let's go home. We've taken up enough of the Northmans' time this evening."

"Yes, Daddy," she said obediently, and got up. "Thank you for your hospitality Mr. and Mrs. Northman."

"You're always welcome here, Jessica. Have a good night," I smiled at her encouragingly, and tried not to burst into tears at the sadness in her eyes.

"Goodnight, Jessica," Eric said.

Bill held the door open for his daughter as she walked out, waved to us and then let the door bounce shut behind him. I crossed the room quickly to watch them walk across the lawn. Bill had a firm grip on Jessica's upper arm, which I didn't like, but I was more concerned with what he was saying to her. I couldn't hear it, but I was sure he wasn't saying anything nice. Tool.

"I want to punch that guy," I muttered and closed the kitchen door once Jessica and Bill were in their own house.

"Me too," Eric said as he lightly rubbed my back.

"What did he say while you two were talking?" I leaned back against him.

"Just that what happened in _his_ house was none of _my _business."

"Well it shouldn't be, but if his daughter shows up on our doorstep hysterical and claiming that he's hitting her mother what else are we supposed to do? We should have just called the cops and let them deal with it," I shook my head.

"If anything more happens, we will," he said. "I won't even hesitate."

"Good," I said angrily and threw the sauce pan into the sink. "You know what Jessica and I were doing while you two were talking in the other room? We were working out a distress signal in case something happens to her!"

The pregnancy hormones went into overdrive and I burst into tears.

"How fucked up is that, Eric? She's just a baby, and she's planning escape routes!" I said between sobs.

He quickly wrapped his arms around me and rocked me gently from side to side. "It's not okay," he said. "No girl her age should be worried about things like this, or planning distress signals."

"She's just such a sweet girl..." I kept on sobbing.

"I know," he said, sounding a little emotional himself. "We'll do whatever we can to help her."

"If I find out he hit her I'll strangle him myself," I sniffled and wiped my face with a dish towel. "She said he's never laid a hand on her, but if that ever changes..."

"I'll hurt him myself," Eric promised.

"And that look on her face when she was talking about us having a daughter that would be wanted? God, that killed me," I almost started crying all over again.

"Me too."

I sighed and said, "I don't think I'm in the mood for a movie anymore. Can we just go upstairs and watch Ian sleep for a little while?"

"Want to put him in bed with us?"

"No, I just want to watch him sleep for a while," I sighed. I could think of other things I wanted to do in bed and we definitely didn't need Ian to be there between us.

"Then let's go do that," he said.

We turned off all the lights and things downstairs before going up. As per usual, Ian had kicked off his covers and his face was flushed. He was sprawled out at the center of his bed, and Fang was curled at the foot of his bed... well, as much as a dog of her size _could_ curl up. Eric and I leaned against each other and just watched our boy breathe for a little while. It was a good thing he was such a heavy sleeper, or the two of us staring at him probably would have woken him up and scared him half to death.

"You ready to sleep now?" Eric whispered after a few minutes.

"Yeah," I whispered back, but went over to kiss Ian's forehead anyway.

Eric took my hand and we went into our bedroom. "I'm so glad we have kids we want."

"Me too," I started pulling off my clothes.

"What was the signal you worked out with Jessica?" he asked as he started doing the same.

"She said if things got bad at her house she was going to turn her desk lamp on by her bedroom window. If everything was okay she was going to leave it off," I recited and headed for the bathroom to brush my teeth.

"Okay, I'll keep an eye out for it," he said. "Which one is her bedroom anyway?"

"The one in the right corner. You can see it from the window over in that little alcove where the window seat is."

"Got it."

I finished brushing my teeth and cleared out of the way to make room for Eric. I gathered up our laundry and dropped it down the chute so it would all be downstairs when I got there in the morning. By the time I got into bed Eric was already there waiting for me, and I climbed in next to him.

"Did you look out the window?" I asked him before I got comfortable.

"Yeah, the lamp isn't on," he said.

"Good," I breathed a sigh of relief and snuggled in next to Eric.

"Everything will work out," he said as he rubbed my back.

"I know. I just worry. It's a mom thing, I think," I kissed his cheek.

"It's a good thing though. Someone needs to worry about that girl."

"Should be her parents, though."

"Yes, it should."

"I know we can't promise to never fight because, well, we're us," I said with a smile, "but can we at least promise to never fight in front of the kids?"

"Yes," he said. "I never want them to think they're not wanted."

"Not even that... I just... my parents used to fight in front of Jason and me when we were kids. Never to the point where it got violent, but it was still always awkward to watch. I don't ever want our kids to feel like they have to get between us to break it up, or like they have to choose a side," I explained.

"I understand. I promise not to fight with you in front of them."

"Thank you," I turned and climbed on top of him. "I love you, you know that?"

"I do," he smiled. "I love you too."

"Think you can be quiet?" I asked and rocked my hips against him.

"Think you can?" he countered.

"Oh I know I can," I grinned.

"Then do your worst."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so now you have a clue as to where this story might be heading, as if the summary didn't give it away already. Scribe hates doing research for stories, and I am going off of the things I know to be true for the state of Illinois, where this story is taking place. Every state has their own domestic violence laws, so it differs from place to place. Neither of us are legal experts or work in law enforcement so what you see here is the product of watching a lot of Law &amp; Order and that's about it. We won't be going all John Grisham on the crime part of this story. Thanks for reading!<strong>


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